Meet Me In The Dark
by Arounagein
Summary: Kalani's all-time favorite paranormal investigation crew, the Ghost Adventures team, is finally going to be in her home town-and guess what... she gets to go with them on their quest. Kalani might not like the dark, but at least Zak will be there right?
1. Meeting Zak

Hello and welcome to my little fanfic. This, of course is about Ghost Adventures—though I am sure you already knew that seeing as you clicked on this—it is my all-time favorite show and I wanted to share a little of it with you all.

I thought this would be a good somewhat creepy fanfiction in honor of my favorite holiday…Halloween! Mwahahah! This story is centered around Kalani Mele, a sixteen year old diehard fan of GA—or more so of Zak. (hehe) It follows her as she tags along on a ghost hunt with her favorite ghost hunting crew and gets to spend a little time with her crush—even if most of that time is spent screaming in fear of whatever lurks around them in the darkness that is the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum.

Note: Before anyone brings up the he's too old for her to like subject… I know. I do understand that there is an age gap, but honestly there are more twisted things on this sight than this. But if it's not something you care for, then don't read it simple as that. For everyone else: Enjoy!

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The night I had always been waiting for had finally come. Tonight, I would at last meet my hero—and crush—Zak Bagans. He is the lead investigator of the Ghost Adventures paranormal investigation crew, which of course was my most favorite show in the whole world! Needless to say, I was beyond excited. I have never been one to get excited very easily, and usually you couldn't really catch me in such a good mood, but tonight was different. The GAC was investigating an old asylum near my house and I was the lucky person to win the contest to be able to tag along and participate in an actual ghost hunt with them! How much better could life get? I truly didn't think it could.

My heart pounded loudly in excitement in my ears as I walk to my dresser and pulled out my black thermal crew and some black cargo pants. If I was going on an investigation with my favorite black clad team, I might as well look the part too. I pulled my black shirt over my head and slid my arms into the warm fabric of its long sleeves, pulling it on and into place. I glanced over at the mirror once I had my shirt situated and checked how it looked, and fussed with my top until I was satisfied. I smiled, finally happy with my appearance. Then I quickly pulled on the heavy material that was my cargo pants, zipping them up and fastening the button to hold them in place. I looked to the shining surface of the mirror again and smiled. Finally, I was ready to go.

I ran down the stairs to where my older sister was waiting for me with an exasperated expression.

"I don't think _**he **_is going to care what you're wearing, Kalani. So, you really don't need to take an hour to get put together." Melika said as I walked into the living room where she was sitting.

"Oh, shut up Meli!" I retorted. He would care, I knew he would.

"Whatever. Are you ready to go?" She asked as she looked at me, giving me the once over check.

"Yeah! Let's go." I beamed, as I grabbed my small backpack.

"Kalani, you know mom and dad aren't happy about this." My sister said, as we made our way out the door to her car awaiting us in the driveway. I looked at it happily, knowing that I was just a short car ride away from Zak.

"Ahem," Melika cleared her throat, trying to regain my attention.

"I know, but mom and dad aren't here to stop me."I smiled as I climbed into the car; the feeling of nervous yet excited butterflies filled my stomach. "Besides, it's just one night out of the whole year that I am not doing what they say. I am constantly making them happy; it's about time I made me happy." I giggled.

"Oh you are such a rebel." My sister said in a mocking tone as she rolled her brown eyes. She shook her head slightly while she turned the key and started the car, pulling out of the drive way and bringing me closer to my dream man.

"I know, right?" I laughed.

My eyes watched outside the window, tracing the shapes of trees and old houses with my gaze as they passed by me in a blur. I placed my hand against the cold glass of the window; I knew just by the chill of its surface that the air outside the cabin of the car was much more arctic. Winter was always cold in Weston, at least to me it was. I still remembered the almost non-existent winters of Honolulu, in Aiea Heights where I grew up for the greater part of my childhood. My family and I moved to West Virginia when I was eleven when my dad got a new job in Weston as a department manager for a communication company, the change was not something I really wanted because I knew my Hawaiian features would never fit in here in Weston . However, we have been in this town for four years now, and I have made many new friends—most of them I think will be lifelong friends. My parents loved it here, feeling that after spending their whole lives in Hawaii, coming to the main land was a welcome change. How many people could say that they don't want to be in Hawaii?

I had come to know where almost everything in this town was—including the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum. It was the creepiest place I had ever seen, and tonight I would be wondering around it in the cold and dark, but I knew I would be okay because after all… _he_ would be there to protect me.

"Hey, are you ok? We're almost there."Melika asked in concern as she looked at me from her spot in the driver's seat.

"Um, yeah I'm totally fine!" I somewhat blurted out, excitement filling my entire being as I realized how close I was to seeing Zak. This was too good to be true!

The sound of gravel crunching beneath our tires could be heard as we pulled up; my heart was pounding so fast I thought it would soon give out under the pressure. I ran my hands through my shoulder length black locks as I looked in the fold down mirror within the visor on the passenger's side, looking at my reflection I tried to make my face appear as calm and collected as possible. I turned my brown eyed gaze toward the doors of the asylum, my eyes searched for the familiar figure of my dreams, but my stare never made contact with its desired sight. I took a deep breath and looked at my sister in the driver's seat, nodding to her as I grasped the door handle and prepared to open it and exit to search for the team I was suppose to meet.

"You be careful, Kalani." My sister said with caution in her eyes, "And remember, if they give you any trouble just call me and I'll come give em' hell."Meli continued jokingly, but her eyes still held a protective air to them. "Mom and dad are going to kill me for letting you go out here."She muttered to herself as I giggled and shut the car door.

I waited there until I could no longer see the glow of her car's headlights on the road leading back towards our house. _'Well Kalani, here you go.'_ I thought to myself nervously as I looked around in the dark, the setting sun only slightly illuminating the sky causing it to glow a purple-ish blue hue. I took a few hesitant steps toward Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum, its overwhelming size and presence overtaking me as I approached it; it was like a monument to pain and suffering. Chills washed through my body as looked up at it, and suddenly I wondered if it was really worth coming to this place. My breathing hitched in my throat as I stared in astonishment, I always thought that the GAC was overreacting when they reacted so strongly to a location, but now I know how it really felt. I guess TV doesn't always lie. My head was starting to flood with images of all the things that await us on the inside, I didn't know if I could handle it, just as I was about to reach for my phone to call Melika a gentle hand grabbed at my arm.

I jumped in panic at the feeling, and whipped around to see who it was. Was it a ghost?

However, I realized my panic was for nothing as I came face to face with Nick Groff, his gentle smile looked apologetic as he took in the fear on my face.

"Whoa sorry, I didn't mean to startle you there, you okay?" He apologized as he let go of my arm and backed up a bit, his soft light brown eyes calmed me down instantly. "You're Kalani, right? Why don't you follow me, and come meet the team? Zak and Aaron are at the van just over here." Nick offered as he led the way over to the van, glancing back to be sure I was following.

My heart was racing; this was too much to take. I was actually near Nick—also one of my biggest heroes—which meant, I was getting even closer to seeing Zak.

My boot clad feet scuffled on the ground beneath me as we made our way to the van and the quote-unquote 'Base Camp', I had to fight the strong urge to break into a run and scamper my way to my dream man. He was so close! My hands were curled into fists as I struggled to hold myself in check, and I looked to the van shortly ahead of me as it got closer and closer. With each step I took my entire being seemed to feel like it was being static charged, the tingly sensation making me completely forget the fear that had been in my mind before hand. Ten, nine, eight, seven—I counted down the remaining moments before we would be at the van and I would finally meet my hero—six, five, four—I couldn't take it, I felt like I was going to faint—three, two…and finally, one.

We rounded the side of the van and could already hear Aaron's booming laugh.

"Bro, did you see that?" He laughed, referring to something I had not caught.

And then, the most perfect voice spoke up in response to Aaron's question, its smoothness sent shivers down my spine as it echoed throughout my being and filled my senses. It was _him_!

"Yeah Aaron, really impressive." Zak retorted with a chuckle.

It felt like my heart was honestly going to cease beating right there on the spot as he came into my view, his presence was overwhelming and at the same time extremely comforting.

"Zak, this is Kalani Mele, our contest winner."Nick announced to Zak, while gesturing to me with a smile.

Zak looked up from the camera he was fussing with and a small smile glided onto his beautiful lips as he spoke. "Hi there! So, you are the one who gets to be locked down in hell with us huh?" He joked, as he walked closer to me and wrapped one of his muscular arms around me in a half hug. "Well, you already met Nick. I am Zak and this goof over here is Aaron."He said while reaching to playfully punch Aaron in the arm.

"I know," I said with a giggle as I watched them—particularly Zak—with starry eyes.

"Of course she knows who we are." Zak said into the camera that Aaron was holding, his voice full of the playful sarcasm that I loved.

"Let me give you a rundown of the equipment we'll be using tonight in our lockdown, don't worry about all the tech terms, they can be kind of confusing" Nick said as he led me to the table holding all of their gear. "Okay, so this first one is called—"

"An EMF detector." I said with a smile on my lips. I knew their tech a lot better than they might think. "And this one is the digital voice recorder for recording EVP's, this is the EM pump and this is the Video Ovilus." I continued as I pointed to the many objects on the little table.

"Whoa bro, you just got owned!" Aaron taunted and laughed at the expression on Nick's face.

"Yeah I did." Nick chuckled, running a hand on the back of his neck. "I didn't expect that one." He joked again.

"But, here on Ghost Adventures, we learn to expect the unexpected," Zak sarcastically said, directing his statement into the camera once again. He seemed to really love that thing.

"Well Kalani, since you know your tech pretty well, let's lock ourselves in the pit of hell shall we?" Zak asked me while once more wrapping a muscular arm around my shoulders; I shivered at the contact as his warm skin touched the soft skin of my neck.

Everything about him was overwhelming, from the feeling of his body so close to mine to his glorious blue eyes even his smell of sweetness and some sort of cologne, it was just so amazing to be in his presence. I felt like I was in heaven, and for a moment I didn't know if I was capable of responding to his question.

"Yeah, let's do it." I finally answered, my head finally clearing enough for me to think straight. I knew I needed to focus, for the sake of their investigation and for my own sake, embarrassing myself in front of Zak would just be too much. I think I would rather bury myself alive than screw this up.

"You sure you're not scared?" Zak said with a slight smile, while lightly patting me on the back playfully.

"Oh, I'm not scared. Are you?"I replied jokingly, trying to look as confident as possible—it must've worked.

"Dude Zak, you just got owned too! Damn she's quick!" Aaron laughed once again, a wide smile spreading on his lips.

"I was being sarcastic of course," Zak laughed in mock shock. "I like her already." He said into the camera with a chuckle. "I think we'll just keep her on the team," He stated while grabbing the camera from Aaron and directing it at me, "Look, she even looks like one of the team with all black and—oh my god is that a GAC ring?" He asked in surprise as he zoomed in on my hand to inspect the ring on my hand.

"Yeah, it is."I said somewhat nervously, fidgeting under the glare of the camera. I never liked having my picture taken or videos to be taken of me, so why I ever thought to be on TV was beyond me—but then again _he _was here so I suppose in my mind it was totally worth it!

"That is just awesome," He said astonishment, his expression of shock being one that was just too cute. "Okay, people of the world, Kalani is officially on the GAC." Zak continued while coming to stand by me, wrap an arm around me and point the lens of the all seeing camera toward us, giving thumbs up in approval of me.

_'In your face Melika! Ha, he so totally cares about what I look like!'_ I beamed to myself in triumph.

"Okay Zak, we should get ready for the lockdown. The caretaker will be here in fifteen minutes to lock us in." Nick stated, his words causing Zak to let go of me and move over to gather things he needed, collecting his gear and camera. I silently cursed at Nick for making Zak leave my side, wishing that he could've just stayed that with me forever.

"Right, hey Aaron can you grab the X-cameras?" Zak responded while pointing to the cameras on the white table full of gear.

I watched them all gather things and before long they had most of the gear on them or in their hands, it almost seemed like they were suiting up for battle—I guess in a way they were, only it was a battle of endurance and courage more than anything. I wished that I could look like I was ready for battle, and maybe on the outside I did, but on the inside I didn't know if I could handle tonight. I really love the paranormal, but I did not like the look of the decrepit building that loomed over us, its presence only serving as a reminder that I really should've thought this all through beforehand. I shook my head to try to rid my mind of the impending thoughts of my own creepy demise, and pulled my ebony hair into a tight ponytail with the hair band that was around my wrist. I could do this, or at least I would try. I honestly didn't have a choice at this point, it was either brave my way through it or disappoint Zak—and really which do you think I would choose?

I glanced over to the table again, now noticing that there was a small pile of equipment still reposed there.

"What are those for?"I asked, gesturing to the clump of objects on the table.

"You. No member of the GAC should go into a hunt unprepared." Zak responded as he grabbed something off the fold-out table and shuffled toward me. He held up two things which were linked by a wire, one was small with what looked like a clip on it and the other was a walky-talky shaped object. "This—" He indicated to what he was holding,"—is your portable mic. You wear it on your shirt like this—" he again gestured to something but this time it was an identical microphone attached to his own shirt. "—so that we can pick up your audio too. That way the people at home can hear us." He explained to me and to the camera that Nick was holding, filming Zak's actions as he went along.

"Oh right, that's cool."I smiled looking back at him, waiting for him to hand the microphone to me.

"Yeah I think they're pretty cool."He joked as he handed me the equipment.

I tried to get the microphone on, but in the limited light we had it was quite confusing. I looked at the one Zak was wearing and attempted to figure out how it was put on, yet somehow in my trials I had managed to tangle myself in the wires to the point I could not figure out which end of the wire led to which part of the microphone. Oh how did I manage to fail at life so miserably?

Zak took note of my current situation and came to my side, tilting his head to the side to try and understand what I had attempted to do.

"Um, here you need some help?" He asked, reaching a hand out to try and untangle the mess I had created for myself. His fingers traced the wires, attempting to find where each led to. Zak's face seemed to hold a somewhat embarrassed look as he tried not to touch me more than necessary—which was difficult considering that the wires were currently wrapped around my whole upper body in a net like composition.

"Uh, sorry…"He trailed as he continued to try and unweave my accidental spider web. "Here, stay still… Aaron can you give me a hand with this?" Zak asked as his irritation with the winding wires was becoming more apparent.

"I am so sorry." I apologized, glancing around nervously.

"It's okay, it happens sometimes. "He said lightheartedly, but I still felt horrible for failing at such an easy task in front of him.

"Can't handle it Zak?" Nick joked from behind the camera he was holding, his voice slightly taunting as he chuckled.

"Oh shut it, man." Zak retorted and pushed the lens of Nick's camera away from us, the sound of the joking tone of his voice made shivers run down my spine. It was honestly unbelievable that I was this close to him, I still couldn't wrap my head around it even as embarrassing as the situation was becoming.

A few minutes passed, a lot of teasing comments were exchanged between the crew, and at last I was free.

"Here, this time let me help you put that on."Zak suggested with a laugh as he took a few steps closer. "So, this part just goes on your belt loop—" He clipped walky-talky part to my belt on my side, "—and then this part just goes up the inside of your shirt and clips on to your collar… Um, I'll let you do that part." He looked toward the camera, "This is a family show after all. I don't think the head guys at Travel Channel would like a lawsuit." He teased in a mock serious tone to the audience—or would be audience seeing as of right it was just a camera, its black lens holding nothing but Zak's own reflection.

I turned away from the all seeing eyes of the camera and slid the microphone up my black thermal shirt and after situating it until I was comfortable once again; I turned back to the crew.

Not too long after I had at last donned my gear, the caretaker had arrived to lock us in. My heart beat raced as we approached the front doors, I dreaded each step I took. My feet felt like they had been coated in lead and they drug me down as I walked. I fought the urge to just turn and book it all the way back to my house, but then I looked at Zak and the crew. The energy they emitted was pure excitement, the confidence in displayed on their faces made me feel a little better. I knew they loved what they did and I knew that they were good at what they did too, and so therefore I knew I was in good hands—oh what I wouldn't give for it to just be Zak's hands.

"Okay guys, you ready?"Zak asked as we entered the looming building.

"As ready as I'll ever be."I tried to joke, forcing a smile.

And with that the doors to The Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum shut before me and paddle locked closed. Well like it or not, I was going along for the ride. _'Oh Zak, help me' _I thought to myself.

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Aaaaannd, that is it for now my peoples. Should I continue? Should there be more chapters? You tell me. Oh and see the button down there at the bottom of the screen? Click it! Hehe come on, you know you want to review!


	2. Lockdown

Well my friends, you asked for it so here it is! Haha, this is the next chapter to this little ficcy. Things are starting to get really creepy in the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum, and Kalani is in for the scare of her life. I hope you all enjoy this! Oh and please review!

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My heart raced as the overwhelming feeling of darkness surrounded me, making the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. We had only been in here for a few minutes and already I was beginning to doubt my ability to pull through this, if I had thought it was creepy on TV, it was much worse in person. My stomach twisted with a nervous feeling, not the joyous one from earlier when I had finally met Zak, it had now become the distinct feeling of dread.

"Kalani, are you okay?" Zak's perfect voice asked from a crossed the foyer by the table where he was looking over some equipment, his voice pulling me from my inner trepidation.

My body filled with a warm sensation at the sound of him speaking, I could still feel the presence of my fear, but I knew as long as he was here to talk me through it I would be okay.

"Yeah, I am." I replied with a nod as I looked over to him, his features illuminated by the light of the electric lantern on the table of supplies.

"Okay, good." His strong voice responded. "Hey Nick, Aaron, can you two start setting up the first two X cams in Ward 1? One in the hallway where an elderly woman named Ruth is said to push or shove people, the other one facing the Ward 1 stretcher room where people have actually seen faces appear in the bathroom mirror there." He finished in an authoritative voice, looking into the camera in Nick's hands.

"Yeah okay, man." Nick responded and reached down to the table to grab the X camera and tripod.

"Kalani?" Zak looked to me, his beautiful eyes darkened by our surroundings.

"Yes?" I returned with a smile, my heart rate speeding up at the realization that if Nick and Aaron were gone, I would be alone with Zak. Oh, talking to him in person in real life was even more amazing than I had dreamed.

"You and I are going to stay here and talk a little bit about the history of Trans-Allegheny and go over the reported paranormal activity here. Just so you know a little bit more about what you are getting into." Zak explained, speaking partially to me and partly to the camera he was holding. "So let's get down to business, shall we?" He asked, again into the camera.

"Yes, let's" I replied, looking around me for a moment. I could hear something down the hall, but I chalked it up to it just being Aaron or Nick and returned to watching Zak.

Zak set his camera up on a tripod atop the folding table and proceeded to grab a flashlight and a few papers from their place on the table. He laid the first piece of paper out on the surface of the stand; it was a map of Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum. He began to explain all of the many wards and rooms of the asylum, telling me each of the historical facts and the paranormal facts of haunting that had occurred. I already knew quite a bit about this place, seeing as it was something that you just couldn't ignore when you lived in Weston, especially because it was so close to where I lived. Even though I knew most of it, I did not stop him from speaking. I loved hearing him talk, so as far as I was concerned, he could talk like this all night if he wished.

"So, with that said, are you ready for our lockdown to truly begin?" He finished up and asked as he looked from the camera back to me.

Just as I was about the respond, the sound of girl's scream pierced the silence and caused both Zak and I to look up in shock.

"What the hell was that?" Zak questioned as he picked up his camera and aimed its sight down the hall where the sound had come from.

The sound of footsteps running toward us was audible as Nick and Aaron ran back into the foyer where Zak and I were.

"Bro, did you hear that?" Aaron asked Zak as he approached.

"Yeah, I did. It sounded like it was coming from upstairs—" Zak's sentence cut off as another scream could be heard.

"Dude!" Aaron exclaimed, turning his camera on the staircase that led to the upper wards.

"Shh…" Zak hushed, his face still full of shock and excitement.

My heart nearly stopped. I knew that they encountered this all the time and that to them it was exciting, heck I always thought it was exciting too when I watched them on TV, but this was terrifying. Every fiber of my being told me to run for the door and never look back, and I fought it with everything I had. I could not back out now, I was locked in here and there was no going back. The scream itself was not the scary part, but the fact that I knew we were the only ones in this decrepit building made my stomach twist and my skin crawl. If we didn't make that sound…What did?

I started to tremble and I hard as I tried to stop it, I couldn't. It was overwhelming, and the worst part was it was already terrifying in here and we hadn't even turned off all the lights yet. Oh, could this get any worse? I looked over to Zak again, his strong form inching its way over to the stairs. I wished I could look as collected as he was—as they all were—but I knew I was going to have a difficult time even trying not to cry.

Nick must have noticed my trembling because he soon turned to me and walked over to my side, placing a gentle hand on my shoulder.

"Hey Kalani, are you ok?" He whispered, his tone filled with the tint of concern.

"Y-yeah, I am…" I tried to respond confidently, failing miserably as I did.

"Zak," Nick called quietly over to Zak.

"I think it's gone, I'm not hearing anything. Are you guys?" Zak replied still somewhat caught up in his excitement, seeming to ignore Nick.

"Hey, Zak." Nick tried again, looking at Zak and then using his eyes to gesture to me once Zak had looked over in Nick's direction.

Zak gave a confused look and tilted his head to the side as if asking Nick what was wrong silently.

"Oh, hey Kalani…you okay?" Zak asked as he walked over to me, handing his camera off to Aaron as he passed by him.

"Yeah, I keep saying that I am okay. Please don't worry about it, I'm fine." I responded. I knew I was not okay, but I was getting tired of being asked the same question over and over. It wasn't going to get better so why complain now?

"If you get too freaked out you just tell one of us, okay?" He stated as his eyes met mine. The tone he used was somewhat light in spirit of the show and the fact that others would be watching this, but his eyes held true concern and a serious air to them.

"O-okay." I responded, looking into his eyes and nodding. He eyes were mesmerizing even in the limited light from the lantern, and I could feel the nervous butterflies fill my stomach as my mind filled with his image and voice.

I knew that I was afraid, and that I should probably tell him that now, but as I thought about it I realized that if I did there was a chance that they would have me leave. That would mean I would have to leave Zak's side, and that was just not something I could do. I had waited for this night forever and there was no way in hell I was going to let it go, even if I was terrified beyond belief. I always thought I was strong, but this place had truly proved me wrong. However, if the Ghost Adventures team could do it, so could I—I hoped.

'_Just fight your way through it like they do, Kalani!' _I shouted at myself internally as I took a deep breath of the frigid air around me.

'_Wait a second…'_

It was then that I actually pulled myself from my own thought and realized something relevant.

The air was freezing, not like it was before, but colder than that. It honestly felt like I was submerged in ice, it was closing in around me and sealing me in its death lock. I tried to move but my body wouldn't respond, it was like I had no control over myself. Panic ran through me like a flood, washing away all rational thoughts. What was this? I started to feel nauseous and lightheaded as shivers continued to work their way through my frightened form.

And then something happened that I never thought I would really feel, and now that it had I wished it hadn't. Something or someone ran their cold hand down my back, seeming to trace the path of my spinal cord.

_**Ka…La…Ni…**_ A phantom voice hissed slowly from behind me. That was the final push I needed to completely freak.

I jolted away from the cold energy, my body finally functioning and a scream coming from my mouth as fear and shock overtook me.

"What the hell? What just happened?" Zak yelled out as he caught my trembling form against his, the warmth of his body enveloping me as his muscular arms wrapped around me protectively.

"I-I just heard a-a voice behind me and something touched me." I forced out, my voice wavering in terror.

"Are you okay? Come here, Kalani." He instructed. "It's okay; I know that can really be freaky sometimes." He comforted while rubbing a hand over my back in soothing circles.

"Aaron, review the footage on your camera. See if you can hear the voice." Zak called out, still holding me.

Aaron did as he was told, flipping his camera around to flip a switch and watch the recording. His face looked concentrated at he stared at the little LCD screen of the camera, the glow illuminating his face with a blue hue. The sound of the audio was too garbled from where I was to actually hear if the voice had been caught on tape. Soon, Aaron's face then filled with shock and excitement as he listened and then rewound the footage and then replayed it again, holding the camera closer to his ear so he could hear it better.

"Oh my god, bro!" Aaron exclaimed.

"What? Did you hear it?" Nick asked, while zooming his camera's focus in on Aaron.

"Oh I heard it, man." He replied while walking over to where Nick, Zak and I were. "It's a freaking voice, man. It says Kalani's name like crystal clear, bro!" He finished enthusiastically.

Aaron passed the camera off to Nick, who listened attentively to its audio. Soon Nick's face too was full of excitement as he played it back again, reacting again to the recording.

"No way, man" Nick stated in shock. "It really says her name."

They handed the camera over to Zak, who released me with one of his arms and held the camera so we could both listen. The LDC screen illuminated the both of us, filling our little space with the blue light.

Zak hit play on the black and silver piece of equipment, the sound of its crackling audio breaking the silence. He leaned closer to the speakers of the camera, tilting he head to the side so that he could get as close as possible.

"Bro, you're not gonna believe it!" Aaron said, obviously still enthralled by the evidence that they had caught.

"Shh…" Zak hushed, listening closely.

I too was pretty close to the camera now, trying to see if I could hear the voice that would no doubt haunt my dreams. The audio was fairly good but the crackles of the little speakers made it hard to hear most of it, but the voice I heard next was perfectly clear. Its accuracy in saying my name froze me once again and I leaned against Zak again, my hands coming to cover my mouth to hold in the gasp of fear desperately trying to escape my throat.

"Holy cow, no way! No way!" Zak now exclaimed once hearing the voice for himself, his face filled with excitement.

I knew this was great to them; an EVP this clear was a rare commodity to come by in paranormal investigations, most were difficult to understand and quiet, but no matter how much I tried to look at it that way I couldn't feel the excitement they did. All I knew was that creepy voice said my name and whatever it was touched me, and that was not the most comforting thing that could happen.

"That is what we look for here on our lockdowns." Zak stated firmly, obviously speaking into Nick's camera.

"That's just awesome man." Nick remarked, his expression full of happiness and awe.

"Yeah…really awesome…" I tried to throw in, but my voice came out trembling rather than filled with the exuberance they displayed.

"Oh…" Was all I heard from Nick as he seemed to be telling Zak something, but he spoke so quietly that I could not make out the rest of what he was saying. I was sill partially leaning on Zak—an action that if I had not been so scared, probably would have made me faint—so I could feel his movement as he nodded to Nick and whispered something back.

I wanted to know what they were saying, but I figured that if they were not speaking loud enough for me to hear, they must not want me to hear what they were currently discussing. My hands were placed over my mouth again, still trying to hold my fear in. I had yet to come out of my little terrifying mind set, not being able to clear the haunting voice from my head. It was going to be exceedingly difficult to continue this investigation now, because I now had confirmation that not only could this stuff happen but it really did. I was aware that this asylum was paranormally active, but experiencing it firsthand would no doubt change my life forever.

Not only had whatever it was spoken to me, but it had also touched me. That in and of itself was enough to creep me out completely. Now that I thought about it, I could feel the path the hand had made down my back, it shouldn't have still felt like anything, but I realized that it was actually hurting to some degree. The cold feeling left behind by the touch mixed with the burning feeling that I could not figure out. Why was I feeling like this?

Zak was still talking to Nick, but soon seemed to stop and then look down at me. His face looked contemplative as his eye met mine once again, seeming to be deciding if he should proceed with talking or not.

"Kalani, Nick and I were talking… and we thought that maybe you would like to go home? It's okay if you don't want to continue. Nick seems to think we should have you leave for your own safety, but I wanted to know what you think." Zak confessed in his usual serious yet caring tone, one that I had heard many times while watching Ghost Adventures and loved so very much.

"No, I want to stay…" I managed to say, not quite focused on what was happening seeing as I was only thinking about the weird sensation I was having on my back. "I can do it." I continued, my tone sounding very off and slightly distant as I spoke. I couldn't focus on anything but what I was feeling, and I let my eyes drift to a random part of the room while my mind wondered.

"Hey Kalani," Zak asked, trying to get my attention as he noted that my eyes would not meet his as I spoke. "Are you okay? What is it?"

"Yeah…I'm fine." I replied, my voice still not quite normal. "Zak, can you do something for me?" I asked, finally being able to bring my distant brow eyed gaze to meet his.

"Yeah, what is it?" He replied, looking at me strangely. I could see him mouth something to Aaron, who then walked closer to us and fixated his camera's view on Zak and me.

I could not respond because it was at that moment I could feel that I was no longer myself, something or someone was in my mind with me. I could feel its anger and suffering as it filled me, meshing our feelings together. My body moved not of my own accord, tilting my head to the side in a creepy manner, allowing my dark bangs to obscure my now dead like brown eyes. I took an unwilling step back from Zak and a smirk formed on my lips, my mind trying to reject the action but not having enough will power to do it.

"Kalani, what's going on? What are you feeling right now?" Zak asked me, waiting for a response as he watched the obvious change in my behavior. He looked to Nick, his face full of fear and understanding. Nick looked back at Zak with the same expression and nodded once, almost like they were speaking with their eyes alone. I wanted to ask what they were internally saying, but I could not make my voice obey me.

"She's mine." My own voice said, yet even though it was coming from me it was clearly not Kalani at all. I just hoped that Zak, Nick and Aaron could see that it wasn't me as well.

"No she isn't." Zak responded his voice authoritative as always, as he seemed to now understand what was going on. "Who are you? Why are you affecting Kalani? You wanna control someone? Why don't you take me?" Zak asked and then taunted, now stepping back to hold his arms out in a manner that suggested that he was handing himself over to it.

"I don't want you here." The voice spoke through me once more, my head rolling to the side so that my bangs moved aside; letting whatever was in me to make eye contact with Zak. The frigid energy that swam through my veins could be felt all throughout the room, as the entity seemed to be enclosing us in its hold.

My body felt weightless and weighed down at the same time, like I was frozen yet floating. I struggled to wake my form from the forced slumber of movement. I pleaded with the force within me to let my mind go, but I did not feel that I reached it.

'_Let me go!' _I screamed at it.

_**You…will…be...mine.**_ It echoed in my skull.

The heavy feeling that filled my being suddenly lifted and my body collapsed forward as I felt my own weight once again.

Zak's face filled with shock as he then caught my falling form and held me up, his muscular arms wrapping around me and holding me together.

"Kalani, Are you okay?" He exclaimed, looking into my eyes to—as I assume—see if I was myself again.

"Yeah…I think so." I mumbled as I focused and looked up at him.

"Dude, that was insane!" Aaron commented, still in shock of what had just happened. "Bro, maybe we should get out of here? I mean we haven't even really started and this crazy stuff's already happening." He suggested, clearly scared and trying to convince everyone that it was time to go.

"Just hold on a sec, Aaron." Zak returned as he turned back to me. "I think you were just possessed, and I want to make sure you are really okay." He nodded to me, his tone full of caring and emotion which he rarely displayed on their show—but I knew there was much more to him than what his fans got to see.

"I feel fine, other than my back…I don't know why, but it really hurts." I admitted as I reached back behind me to try and feel what was causing it to hurt, but I could feel nothing.

"Nick, can you grab the flashlight and bring your camera over here?" Zak asked Nick as he gently guided me to turn around, so that my back now faced him.

"Yeah, sure." Nick replied, walking over to grab the requested object.

My breathing hitched in my throat as I felt two strong hands slide up my back, pulling my shirt up as they went. These hands were not the cold, unwelcome hands that I had felt before, but these were warm and comforting making me almost melt into their gentle touch.

'_Zak…'_ I thought blissfully

The warmth of his body heat penetrated my skin as he held my shirt up, awaiting the flashlight so he could properly inspect my back. I looked over my shoulder to see what he was doing, his face was serious as he stared in concentration at whatever he had found on me, clearly not having enough light from the lantern to make out what it was.

"Here, Zak." Nick said as he handed the flashlight off to Zak and then focused his camera on me.

I was uncomfortable under the glare of the camera and felt like curling up into a ball and disappearing, but I knew I had to stay put—the cold pain emanating from my back reminded me of that.

"No way!" Zak exclaimed as he flicked the flashlight on and directed it on my skin. "Dude, do you see that?" He continued, looking to Nick with wide eyes.

"Yeah, but I don't think I believe what I see." Nick replied with shock in his voice, his camera still pointed at me as he zoomed in on whatever it was they saw.

"Bro, what is it?" Aaron, who had walk to the other side of the room asked as he walked back over to Nick, Zack and I. He too exclaimed in shock as he looked at the skin on my back, his eyes the size of dinner plates and his jaw dropping as he stared.

"Okay bro, this is what I meant! We really need to just get the hell out of here!" Aaron tried again to convince them, backing up as he looked around us in fear.

"What… it is?" I finally asked, not sure I wanted to know the answer to that question.

"Kalani, you have scratches on your back, like big freaking scratches." Zak stated, his voice still full of disbelief. "But, that's not the weirdest part… "

My heart dropped. What the hell? I mean I had seen this happen on TV and as much as I believed in the paranormal I never thought it was really possible for that to happen in real life—especially not to me of all people.

"What is the weird part?..." I asked, my voice now trembling and filled with the tinge of fear.

"Well…" He began as he tilted his head to the side once again concentrating on something which I now knew were scratches. "The scratch marks spell out—K—I—L—L" He read aloud the letters inscribed into my flesh.

"What? What does that mean? Kill what? Me?" I asked in panic. Not only had I been possessed, but maybe that thing really wanted me dead. After all it did specifically say that I belonged to it.

"I don't know…I have never seen scratch marks like that before." Zak admitted, his tone now clouded with confusion…and maybe even fear.

What did that leave me with, if Zak did not know what to do? I had planned on him knowing everything, but I now realized that was an unfair assumption. However skilled in this field he was, there were still things that he had not encountered, and in that respect he was no more a paranormal investigator than I was. They were only human after all, just as I was, and they could not possibly know everything about the paranormal. No human ever could, until they themselves passed on to the other side. In theory, every ghost was a human at one point, a living, breathing person. They could do just as much harm as any human could; only it was more difficult for them to cross the veil that separated the living from the dead to do so. So yes, humans could be frightening, but at least I knew what they were.

The scary part of all this was…This thing, be it a ghost or not, did not feel human at all. It was something much darker, much more evil. And whatever it may be, it wanted me and me alone.

The question now was: Did it want me alive…or dead?

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That's all for now folks, tune in next time!

Well if there is a next time… that's up to you! Review and let me know! :D


	3. In The Dark We Collide

Hello all, here is the next chapter in my little fic! I hope you all enjoy what I have for you today! I know it isn't very long, but you'll see why that is as you read. I promise I will make the next one nice and long hehe.

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I have never been a very strong person, emotionally or physically. So, perhaps coming on this investigation was a bad idea on my part—a mistake even—but I was in it now and it was my mistake to face.

The only saving grace in this hell hole was Zak; he was all that was holding me together at this point. When every fiber of my very being told me to just let him and the team continue on, another part of me told me I needed to stay with him—that I needed him and him alone. This was, after all, my only chance to be with him. I knew that he was a busy, successful man and that he had many more important things to tend to than me. Compared to his life, mine was nothing. So, this was my only opportunity to work with him…to be with him.

I swallowed the fear that rose in my throat and body, the shivers still trying to break through my barricade of will and rattle me to pieces. I tried to hold myself up and keep my mind off of the bizarre scratches in my back, yet the pain still found a way into my cloudy mind. My arms came to wrap around my middle, attempting to hold all the terror within my shaking frame. It was honestly frustrating not being able to control myself, and I found my temper begin to rise. I was being a wimp, and I knew it.

'_Come on, Kalani! Hold it together! You are making yourself look like a total wuss in front of Zak.' _ I yelled internally, mentally slapping myself for acting like a baby. Honestly I knew most people would be scared and not afraid to show it, and I would have too…if _he _were not here.

Zak changed everything, because he was my everything and always would be. I know how weird that sounds to say, but it was true. He really was everything that I wanted and needed. In honesty, I knew that it seems like I just have crush on Zak and that I am just a weird obsessed fangirl—but I am not. It is different with Zak, he was different all together. He was an amazing, sweet, strong and funny man, and I couldn't dream of being with anyone other than him. So, that was the reason I had to do this. I had to make the most of my time with my dream man, even if it was only for one night and even if it was in the creepiest place I could fathom.

So, scratches or no scratches, possession or no possession I would not back out of this miracle opportunity.

"Hey, Kalani?" Zak said, his wonderful voice breaking me out of my train of thoughts.

"Yeah?" I returned, looking over to him and smiling as best I could.

"I know that things in here are getting pretty active, and kind of scary. So, if you want to leave now, we honestly won't mind. It might be best for your safety." He continued, his expression understanding as he motioned toward the door.

"Are you guys still going to investigate here?" I asked, I wanted to know if they were going on, even without me.

"Well yeah, we have committed to it and this is our battle. But, you don't need to be a part of it if you don't want, okay?" Zak tried to comfort, like he was hoping that I was not feeling obligated.

"Okay. You are right." I said, looking at him.

"Okay—"He began.

"This is _our _battle… and that means I am a part of it. So, if it's okay with you, I want to keep going…with you." I finished while blushing.

"Oh…okay then, let's get started." He replied while looking at me, and if I wasn't mistaken I would say that he was blushing too. "We're all in this together I guess."

I continued to stare into his beautiful blue eyes, not wanting to lose this moment of connection. So, maybe he wasn't feeling the way I did, but in all honesty I didn't care of he did right now. He may not like me, but at least he wasn't shooting me down yet. I knew he didn't know me personally so it really wasn't feasible for him to like me…as of yet at least. I felt like giggling as the familiar nervous butterflies filled my stomach and made me fidget slightly.

"Ahem." Nick cleared his throat, trying to break Zak's attention off of me.

Unfortunately, it worked. Zak looked away from me and directed his eyes to Nick, the expression of embarrassment he wore being very obvious to me as he did so. Nick chuckled as he looked to Zak, his face illuminated by the LCD screen of his camera, making it very easy to see the smirk on his face.

"Hey Zak, when you're done flirting, can we get to our lockdown?" Nick teased, his smirk now a full on smile as he toyed with his friend.

I wanted to say something, but by now my heart was racing due to the nervousness I felt as the pink tint on my face grew redder. He wasn't flirting… was he?

"Oh shut up, man." Zak retorted, his voice trying to hold its tough disposition.

"Okay, whatever you say bro." Nick returned as he chuckled again.

"Seriously man, shut it. Seriously… let's just do our job okay." Zak defended, shaking his head and somewhat glaring at Nick.

"That's what I was trying to say, but you were too busy staring at Kalani." Nick continued, smirking once more.

"Come one, dude, drop it." Zak once again pled.

"Okay guys, enough." I finally stepped in, I couldn't watch my Zak get upset and do nothing to help him. Wait…Did I just say 'my Zak'? Well, at least I didn't say Zaky—though that is a cute name for him. "Let's just do this." I continued, and the strength in my own voice shocked me. The fear I had felt before had seemed to melt away as the happy feeling Zak gave me filled the space where terror once occupied.

"Right. Let's" Zak confirmed as he looked at me, his eyes seeming to silently thank me for saving him further embarrassment.

I smiled in return, wishing that I could just keep things like this forever. If only I could just stop time and leave things as they were, here with him seeming to finally notice me.

The rest of the X cameras were set with ease, no activity interrupting us as we made our trek through the decrepit building. The peeling paint of the walls made it look all the more forgotten, as the rooms and corridors formed a maze of floors and wards that I would never possibly remember or decipher. Each seemed so similar and yet different at the same time, yet the differences were not enough for me to make out which hall led to which part of the complex. The creepiest part was the shear silence of the entire building, only the sound of our whispers seemed to hum throughout the walls. Maybe this was a good sign; maybe it meant that whatever had wanted me was gone now, like the wind. However, something in the pit of my stomach told me that it was still here…waiting for the right moment to take me for itself.

I had made it my job to stay as close to Zak as possible, knowing that he was the sole reason for my strength.

"Okay Nick, Aaron, you two are going to go down to Ward 1 and see if you can get Ruth to talk. They say she really does not like men and has been known to shout at them or sometimes push them. I wanna see if you guys can get her to act up. Okay?" Zak instructed as he pointed to the location on the map in his strong hands.

Nick and Aaron both nodded in agreement, looking at the indicated spot.

"Of course you want to be with Kalani, man." Nick joked.

"Nick, shut it okay." Zak scolded, huffing in frustration.

"Okay, fine." Nick chuckled as he directed the camera to me.

"Okay, as I was saying. You two will be in Ward 1, and Kalani and I are going to head over to the ballroom, see if we can get some EVP's" Zak continued his orders, trying not to look at the expression on Nick and Aaron's faces. The smirks they wore told the whole story and I knew that Zak was trying to avoid any further teasing from them.

As Nick and Aaron made their way back down the stairs in the direction of Ward 1, I silently watched as Zak flicked off his flashlight and pulled a piece of equipment from his rather large pocket.

"This, as you know is the EMF detector. For the people at home that don't know, what this does is it measures the electromagnetic field and any spikes that might occur within it. Ghosts are said to use the electromagnetic energy to manifest, which creates a spike on the EMF detector." He explained to the camera, his voice echoing against the crumbling walls that surrounded us.

"With that said, let's get going. Now, Kalani I am going to have you hold the camera for me, okay?" Zak asked as he looked over to me, walking closer and holding out the camera for me to take.

"Yeah, that's fine." I replied with a smile as I took it from his hands, not that he could see it with the lights off now. The darkness around us made it impossible to see two inches in front of us. The only way I had been able to see what he had been doing being the faint light of the LCD screen of the camera that was in his hands. It had acted like a beacon to tell me at the very least where he was, from there I could feel my way around but with that light source now in my hands he was completely invisible to the naked eye. I looked now to the screen on the camera, its night vision view acting as a little window of sight; through it I could once again see my favorite investigator. I knew he could not see me, other than the LCD screen, but that was fine for me. I was happy just being near him.

"I can't see anything so you're going to have to be my eyes, okay?" He asked from the blackness.

"Okay, yeah I will try to help. Don't blame me if you fall though okay?" I kidded, giggling slightly.

"Why would I ever blame you?" He returned jokingly.

I tried to focus on the happy feelings he had given me as we walked down the corridor to the ballroom, the darkness making it very hard to maintain a clear, non-fearful mind set. The floors echoed with the sounds of our footsteps as we shuffled blindly to our dark destination. The ramshackle building's interior was washed out by the abyss of black, making everything outside of my little night vision window an unknown world of fear and uncertainty. My psyche struggled to hold on to the strength I had felt earlier with Zak, hoping that just the memory of it would prove to hold me together. However, I doubted it would, seeing as I could feel the fear rising in my mind. I locked my brown eyes onto Zak, hoping that the sight of him could pull me through.

"Hey, Kalani?" Zak called quietly in the dark.

"Yeah?" I replied, trying keep my eyes on him while watching where I was going.

"How am I as far as walking goes?" He asked."Am I going to run in to any random crap yet?"

"Um, you might wanna take a step to the left to avoid the desk in front of you." I replied.

"Wait, what desk—Agh!" He yelled as he tripped on the side of the desk, falling to his knees.

I ran over to him as swiftly as I could, trying not to trip as he had. I couldn't believe I had just let him fall like that, I was supposed to be his eyes and I totally failed at that task.

I looked through the LCD screen, watching my steps and once I had reached him I placed the camera down on the desk now beside him.

"Are you okay? I am so sorry, I should have warned you quicker." I apologized quickly, and lent down to where I assumed he was, seeing as I could not clearly see his form.

"It's okay; I am fine, though I can blame you now." He joked from the darkness in his place on the floor.

"Here, let me help you up." I suggested, feeling around to try and find a hold on his arms.

The process of finding him was somewhat awkward, and as I felt my way in the dark I was sure that my face looked like a tomato. He was silent though in what I assume was either shock or embarrassment, as my hands trailed up his chest, the strong muscles beneath my hands tensing ever so slightly. His breathing was ragged to some extent as he sucked in a breath of air; I could feel his lungs expand as they took in the cool oxygen and then slowly expelled his held breath. The sweet smell of his very essence filled me, and all I could think about in that instant was that this must be heaven. Surely earth could not hold this kind of feeling in its possession. I knew that what I was doing was probably too much, but I could not pull myself away from him. My hands nervously slid across his upper form and soon my timid touch had found his shoulders. I moved my hands down his muscular arms, memorizing the contours of his skin as I went, and finally I found my way to his hands. With an anxious breath I took hold of his hand and attempted to help him up, pulling him to his feet as best I could.

"Thanks, Kalani…" He trailed quietly as he pulled himself fully to his feet, and now towering over me. I hated being short.

"Yeah…Sorry." I breathed, I wished I could've looked into his amazing eyes, but the shear darkness of our surroundings made it impossible to see anything.

I could feel his hot breath float across the reddened skin of my face, the sweet smell of him washing over me in waves. It was overwhelming, and I just could not wrap my mind around how close we were to one another. My already racing heartbeat sped up to a pace that I didn't feel was physically possible, making my chest feel like it was near its bursting point.

"Don't apologize…" He replied in a heated voice, the smooth drawl of his statement made shivers run up and down my spine.

The air around us may have truly been a frigid temperature, but in that moment it felt as if the oxygen around us had been set ablaze, surrounding us with its burning warmth. My hands were still notably in his stronger ones, and I held tight to him, not wanting to ever let this miracle moment slide out of my trembling grasps. I could feel his hold on my hands constrict slightly as well in response to my desperate grip on him. The worry that I had truly made him think I was insane filled my being, I knew that this was most likely not what he wanted. However, he had yet to pull away, so maybe that was a good sign. Right?

The sound of him stepping closer to me echoed off the walls, the silence only being broken for a moment before the deep abyss of nothingness swallowed up any other thought of sound. I could feel and hear him shift, but due to the absolute blackness, I could not see what it was that he was doing. The shear heat of his body made me melt as it wrapped me up in his presence, filling me with a sensation that I could not even begin to describe. I wanted to ask him what it was that he was doing, but I felt that words would only prove to poison this perfect slice of bliss.

I couldn't fathom that things could get any better than this, but what happened next honestly nearly sent me straight to the stars.

Zak strong arms pulled me even close than we already were, his hot breath ghosting over my trembling lips. His hands came to rest on the middle of my back, holding me as close as possible. My breathing practically ceased completely as the feeling of his smooth, warm, soft lips brushed against my own. The slowness of each motion was driving me over the edge; I couldn't wait for it any longer.

Zak's muscular arms wrapped around me ever more tightly, and sealed my form to his own. My own shaky arms wound their way up and around the back of his neck, the warmth of our mingled body heat making my frame shudder once again.

'_This can't be real…' _My mind interjected. _'There is just no way.'_

My thoughts of rationality were proven wrong at last though as he finally closed the gap between our lips, his mouth gently pressing to mine. The contact lit my entire being on fire, every inch of my body filled with an unexplainable warmth. The feeling of his lips against mine was like no feeling I had ever felt—this being my first kiss after all—and my heart soared to the heavens further with each passing moment. Of course, I didn't really know what I was doing, but I tried my best to return the action. The kiss was gentle and innocent, yet overwhelming, and though only seconds were passing I felt as if we had been in this instant for an eternity. Each second seemed to pass at the speed of an hour, and I wouldn't have wanted it any other way. If I had my way, this moment would last forever and beyond, the only feeling I wanted to feel was right here with him.

Unfortunately this could not continue forever, and eventually he pulled back from me, our lips disconnecting as he did so. I longed to pull him back to me, wishing more than anything that the dream could once could once again descend and engulf us as we joined in a blissful kiss. However, I realized that we both needed to breathe as my lungs finally decided to function once more, my chest heaving slightly as I sucked in one long, ragged breath and exhaled slowly. I could feel his heartbeat as his chest pounded against my own, my own heart rate nearly mirroring his as they beat in unison.

"Sorry…" He breathed, still holding me close.

"Don't apologize," I said, mirroring his former statement, the touch of humor residing in my voice.

"Okay then, I'm not sorry." Zak chuckled softly.

"So…what—"I trailed, my voice contemplative as I realized something. Now that I had him, where did we go from there?

"What does this mean?" His voice chimed in, finishing my thought.

"Yeah… I mean, are we…?" I mumbled self-consciously, not wanting to sound too desperate or awkwardly hopeful.

"I honestly have no clue…Would you want to be?" He asked in hesitation, the usual strong tone of his voice now reduced to a slightly confused whisper. "Or, was it just something you would only want to do once?"

"I—um, I would really like to do it more." I replied, my voice noticeably trembling with nervousness. I hated that I was so weak, but what could I do?

"I would too." Zak responded with a nervous chuckle as he held me closer.

I could not believe what was happening, this was all just too surreal and my brain was having a very difficult time downloading all the info it was receiving. Not only had I been able to meet the Ghost Adventures team, not only had I gotten to go on a ghost hunt with them—terrifying as it may be—but I had also gotten the miracle opportunity to be near my dream man…and best of all, kiss my dream man. It honestly didn't get better did it? This was heaven—well not the asylum, but the feeling of being with Zak—and I wouldn't trade it for the world.

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Well my minions, that is all for now. I shall leave you hanging! Mwahahaha!

I apologize for the shortness, but I think the cuteness of this chapter makes up for that. Don't you? Anyway, let me know what you think! I love hearing what you all have to say, be it positive or negative… Don't be afraid to review. (Honestly I just like hearing from you all…I get lonely in here) Haha! :D


	4. Trapped

Hello my dears, I have constructed this lovely little chapter to make up for the shortness and mushiness of the previous one. (Though, kissing Zak is honestly all I would want to do hehe) Anyway, I hope you all enjoy!

If you scare easily (number one why would you be reading a ghost story?) I warn you not to read this one with the lights off. With that said, here it is!

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Zak and I had let go of one another as we continued our walk down the hall to the ballroom of the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum, the air around still loomed with the heavy heat from earlier. I could still feel my heartbeat racing, its rapid rhythm vibrating my entire being. My thoughts floated blissfully, still riding the high of actually kissing him. I could feel the warmth of the whole experience filling my body, making me shiver slightly. There was just no way that any of this could be real, it was too perfect.

'_And too quiet…' _I thought to myself.

Zak had not spoken since our last little conversation about ten minutes ago, and though that was not really all that long ago, locked within the heavy silence of this decrepit place ten minutes was an eternity. The hallow space around us echoed every word we had spoken, but with no words being exchanged, the walls only amplified the chilling hum of stillness.

My head began to swim with the fearful thoughts that perhaps he was regretting what we had done, and now trying to put distance between our feelings. I could barely breathe as the sinking feeling of panic lit my senses and overtook my person. The sound of the silence was now taunting me, only proving to further my dread. I tried my best to keep the camera in my hands steady when every bit of me wanted to curl into a ball and vanish, clenching my hands onto the equipment so not to drop it. I knew I was most likely overreacting, but in this dark world of uncertainty, my mind rejected most all logic. My thoughts raged like a freight train, speeding through me and filling my mind with all the unpleasant turnouts that could occur. Zak regretted it, didn't he? I was just some fan girl after all; perhaps he weighed the options and found that I was not worth it. I prayed that is was all just my self-conscious nature that caused me to not believe that he could love me back the way I loved him, hoping that I was all wrong and that everything was just fine. However that was the bad part, everything did not feel alright.

I had been too wrapped up in my blissful mindset to notice how off he was acting, my mind not seeming to even realize how different his actions were. I had thought it was simply because maybe he too was too consumed by what had happened, but then something came to me…This was Zak of Ghost Adventures, since when did he ever not talk to some degree? He usually kept up a fairly consistent pace of speaking for the sake of his show, and I knew that he would not so easily forget about it. His silence was the first clue to his abnormal persona, but there was one other thing that insinuated that something was different—something wrong.

My hands tightened their hold on the camera within their grasps as I looked into the LDC screen, watching Zak as he moved down the hallway. His movements were what I found strangest and most unnerving, being completely fluid and swift, almost like he had the contents of this corridor memorized. Even with the night vision camera I was having difficulty making sure I was not tripping over something or my own feet, and yet here he was dodging everything like he already knew it was there. I wanted to ask him if was alright, but the feeling that poured from him told me I should just be quiet. My stomach twisted and I mentally slapped myself for not noticing this all earlier. I hated that my teenage inability to see past my own feelings had stopped me from noticing the obvious change in Zak's personality. How long had he been acting like this? I honestly had not been in the right mind to even consider how he had been behaving, and now I knew that I should have been paying attention all along. I was so stupid.

I kept my brown eyes trained on his reserved form, watching his back as he moved ahead of me. He had not turned to look at me once, his body seeming to have a desired destination that he would not stray from. My mind continued to curse at myself as I followed behind him, not wanting to be left behind, I tried to keep up with his fluid pace.

The atmosphere around us was heavy and warm but the distant and bitter sensation that went along with it made my body shiver. Every bit of me wanted to ask what was going on, but the cold silence reminded my frightened brain that was not a very good idea.

'_What the hell is this feeling?' _My mind tried to figure, as I followed his walking form.

I held the camera up, watching the illuminated LCD screen and waiting for Zak to turn and tell me everything was fine, say that he was just thinking or say anything at all for that matter. My frame trembled as I watched his eerie movements, the absolute silence of the air choking off any hope of strength I had.

Then something on the camera caught my eye, it was not Zak but the battery charge icon displayed on the screen, its flashing percentage made my heart stop.

Its glowing white font read: 66.6%...666.

I quickly pulled the thermometer device that I had been given earlier from my pocket, checking the current temperature seeing as I felt like the whole room had suddenly turned to ice. As my eyes squinted at the reading, I nearly dropped everything I had and ran.

It too read 66.6 degrees.

My heart thudded to life again and sped up like a metronome gone haywire, its ticking rapidly beating. I gasped, my lungs sucking in a breath of the heavy air around me but the air did not aid my current terror like I had hoped it would.

Zak must've heard my audible breath as he slowly and creepily turned to face me, his head tilting to the side as his stare connected with mine. What I saw through the LCD screen next completely froze me; the chills of horror racked my frame where I stood. His eyes were red, the irises shown a crimson blood color. If I hadn't known better, I would've chalked it all up to just a camera flare or something like that, but this was night vision. The display only shown in shades of washed out greens; it didn't show colors other than that. It simply wasn't possible for his eyes to appear red. So, how in the world was it happening?

"What's the matter?" His voice spoke, the drawl of his breathy tone making my body tremble uncontrollably. This did not sound like the Zak I knew.

This was not Zak.

His body turned to fully face me, his head still tilted to the side in an inquisitive yet eerie manner. I could hear my own heartbeat as it drummed in my ears, my pulse clearly flying through the roof. My whole body tensed like a deer caught in the headlights of its approaching doom, and I couldn't force my unwilling body to move.

"I told you that I would make you mine…" Zak's now dark voice called from the blackness, the nature of it seeming to be something otherworldly—something evil.

That was the final push I needed.

My throat let out a scream as I turned and ran. The smirk plastered on his possessed face making me finally come to my senses enough to pull myself away from him. I could hear his heavy footsteps following after me as my feet skid across the dusty floor, making my heart feel like it was going to give out. My lungs felt as if they were going to explode as they rejected the action of breathing, causing me to gasps helplessly as I bolted down the pitch black hall. The only aid I had to see was the camera's night vision screen, and I held it close to my face as I dashed around a corner. I knew I was running from something that already knew everything about this place, meaning that no matter how much I tried to lose him, avoiding him was near impossible. At the very least I could put distance between us. I knew that I was being weak, but whatever that was, it was not Zak. I was alone now and my only hope was to find my way down to Nick and Aaron and hope that they could be the strength I was lacking. The echoing sound of his footsteps haunted my mind as he effortlessly trailed my path. There was no hope.

"I thought you wanted to be with me." His dark voice called after me. "So, what are you running for, Kalani?" The voice taunted again.

My body wanted to give out, no longer able to hold itself together, but the undeniable adrenaline I felt kept me on my feet as I ran. I could hear his approach still even though I seemed to be pulling away from him, finally a little distance between us. Just as the feeling of some accomplishment began to fill my mind, I realized something that made me want to just end it all now. I had run to a dead end.

I skidded to a stop as I saw the wall in front of me, and flipping around I could see that there were no other doorways or rooms, only windows and being on the third floor windows were simply not an option. My heart rate sky rocketed even more as my breathing came in small, desperate gasps. I whipped the camera around, hopelessly looking for another exit, and wishing that one would simply just appear and offer me the safe and easy way out. However, my prayers were not going to be heard.

"You know…you make this way too easy." The voice called from the blackness at the other end of the hall. He had already caught up with me; it wasn't even a challenge for him.

I felt like crying, because from this point I knew there was no way out.

The windows on the right side of the hall let in small streams of the lucid moonlight, allowing me to make out his form as it approached. It seemed to only take him a moment and he was directly in front of me, pinning me to the wall behind me with one muscular arm on each side of me. I was trapped and I knew it.

"You should know that it is quite rude to run from someone when they are talking to you…" Zak's darkened voice breathed in a taunting tone, his face now so close to my own that I could feel the vibration of each word spoken.

My body shivered at how close he was to me, and I whimpered as the feeling of his warm lips brushed over my own. This wasn't right, and I could feel the malicious intent pouring forth from the entity occupying Zak's form. It wanted to hurt me more than anything, and now that it had a physical body, that task would be easier than ever.

"I told you… didn't I? You will be mine…" His cold voice mocked.

His body pulled closer still, and I could feel the force of his form press me further against the wall.

"Zak…p-please…s-stop…please." I begged, tears filling my eyes.

"I am not…Zak." The voice hissed, anger rising in its voice.

I whimpered again and turned my head to the side, trying to avoid the enraged glare I could feel burning into me. Slowly he raised a hand to my face and gently brushed my black bangs from my eyes, the moonlight illuminating the smirk on his pale face.

"Shh, it's okay…you don't need to be afraid." He cooed in a taunting voice.

My senses at that point seemed to completely shut down, letting my self-preservation mode kick into ignition. I couldn't just stand here and let this continue, who knows what he would do to me? My mind tried to clear as best it could, as I focused on my options. I didn't have many—only one to be exact—and I would have to do it in one shot or I would be screwed.

Forcing all of my energy to my arms, I placed my hands against his muscular chest and pushed as hard as I could with a speed I didn't know I had. He skidded backwards only a step or two, it wasn't much, but it was all I needed to make an opening. I ducked under his arm as he tried to grab me once again, and ran as fast I could back down the hall I had first come from. I knew that he wouldn't be far behind in pursuit, but at least I was free for the time being. Hopefully I would be able to find the stairs that led to the lower floors, my only chance of finding help. My mind tried desperately to remember where the staircase had been, but unfortunately I was drawing a blank.

'_Kalani, this is not a time to be forgetful!' _I yelled internally to myself.

I could hear the growl of frustration from him echoing through the peeling paint walls of the asylum, and soon the sound of his heavy footsteps could also be heard.

With the camera held tightly in my hands I rounded yet another corner and my heart could've jumped for joy because there, in all its dark glory, were the stairs.

My feet carried me down the steps so fast I was worried I might trip, but I kept my pace knowing that soon he would once again be behind me. I watched the sign indicating the second floor pass by me as I booked it down to the first level, the dusty steps beneath me winding down to my destination.

'_Only one more little flight of stairs.' _I chanted to myself, trying to encourage me to go faster, knowing that I was running on limited time.

As I finally skid out onto the first floor I could feel the adrenaline pull me forward, keeping my tired legs functioning as best they could.

"Nick! Aaron!" I yelled out as I ran toward the direction that Ward 1 was in, my heart beating insanely as I prayed they would answer.

"Kalani is that you?" I heard Nick's voice call, my ears rejoicing at the sound.

"Yes! Please help!" I called out as I ran into the room they were in.

I ran as fast as I could and adhered myself to Nick's side, clinging onto him and hoping that alone could save me.

"What's going on? Where is Zak?" He questioned, turning on his flash light so he could better see me.

"I-I think…Z-Zak…is possessed." I cried between breaths, my breathing still having yet to recover from the marathon I had just run.

"What do you mean? Tell us what happened, did he hurt you?" Nick asked as he wrapped an arm around my shoulders.

I knew it was not Zak that I had just encountered and that they would understand what had happened, but I could not bring myself to speak. I could only hold tightly to Nick's side and pray that Zak would return to normal and everything would be okay.

"Kalani, it's okay. Please tell me what happened." Nick tried again.

I could not respond, my lips not willing to let the words out and all I could do was turn my head and burry my face in Nick's chest. I cried, and I knew that I shouldn't because I was okay now, but I couldn't get the image out Zak's red eyes out of my head and every moment that had taken place haunted my thoughts.

"Bro, where's Zak now?" I could hear Aaron ask Nick.

"I don't know, and that's the problem." Nick replied, his voice confused as he sighed.

The feeling in the room grew heavy with the familiar energy and soon I could tell that he was near even if I could not see him.

"Whoa! Holy crap bro! Zak, man, you scared the hell out of me!" Aaron yelled suddenly, his voice fearful and then accusing. "What the hell happened to you?" Aaron asked, and I could hear footsteps enter the room we were in, as the energy seemed to grow.

"Quiet." Zak's voice commanded.

"What the hell bro, what's wrong with you?" Aaron asked once again, his voice utterly confused.

"I said, quiet." Zak said once again.

I was frozen in my place against Nick, and I wished that I could've just disappeared, knowing that if he had not been here to hold me up I would have already been reduced to a whimpering ball on the floor. My heart had felt like it was stopped and every part of my body told me that I was going to die, that this was it and I would never outrun this thing that wanted my soul so badly.

"Zak, man, calm down." Nick tried to interject.

"I…am…not…Zak" The voice spoke through Zak, his head tilting eerily as he hissed out the words like venom.

"Then why don't you get out of his body?" Nick challenged with me still clung to his chest.

"I will have her…" The entity growled once more.

The heavy feeling in the room lifted, its lead weight finally letting us out from its grasps. Just as quickly as it had come, it was gone and I could hear the thud of someone collapsing. My heartbeat finally slowed a bit as the dreadful feeling that had been there before along with the panic was finally raised from my being, allowing me to breathe a sigh of relief.

"Zak, dude are you okay?" I could hear Aaron call over to Zak followed by the sound of him walking over to what I could assume was Zak.

I could not bring myself to pull away from Nick, afraid that when I saw Zak it would not really be him looking back. My hands curled into fists in Nick's shirt, holding tight to him as a life line. The haunting images of Zak's possession filled my brain, leaving me trembling and cold. I took a deep breath, letting the cool air soothe my exhausted lungs, the chill of the oxygen coming as a welcome release for my pervious terror. I knew I was okay now, but my survival instincts were still going strong and every part of my body rejected the thought of turning to face _him_. I did not blame him, seeing as I knew what it was like to be possessed, but facing him right now just didn't seem to compute at all. Zak was a good person, that was a fact, and I knew for certain that he would never—ever—knowingly hurt me. Yet the possibility still loomed, and I knew that even if he did not wish me harm, whatever had been controlling him wanted it more than anything. The weird part was…it had not hurt me. It had the perfect opportunity when I had been pinned to the wall, yet it hadn't done anything. Come to think of it, it had kissed me once and had tried to do it again when we were in the hall. Did that even make sense? No it did not. Why would something as evil as this entity, kiss me?

I thought of the way it had been acting, the way it had kissed me and held me close. Its warmth surrounding me completely and sealed me to it, making me feel so secure and safe—only because I had thought it was Zak—but it had not tried to harm me then when it would have been so easy.

I knew that this thing wanted me…but did that mean it _wanted_ me?

The thought of that alone made me shiver again, and I wished more than anything that I had not thought of it in that sense, but in honesty it made complete sense. The entity had been so very loving when it had kissed me, not once being rough or hurtful, and it never gave me the feeling that it had wanted to harm me at that point. Only when I had ran and hid from it did the feelings it gave me change, it was following me like a puppy—a creepy puppy—but a puppy nonetheless. It wanted me back and so it had chased me, and as terrifying as the thought was I knew that was true. The spirit never showed anger until I had called it by Zak's name, almost like it was offended that I had called out the name of another man. It was jealous.

I know this all sounded crazy, but it made total sense. It—whatever it was—loved me, and it was upset that I had loved it when I had thought it was Zak and then ran from it when I discovered it was not. I knew that whatever it was did not wish me harm now, it only wanted me for itself, but I could not deny that its energy was not a good entity. It still felt evil—the triple six readings stood as proof of that—and I did not want to be around it. So harmless or not, I could understand it, but I could never love it.

'_As much as I pity it, I cannot be Satan's mistress.'_ I decided in my mind.

Now that it all made sense to me, I could feel an ounce of my strength return to my being. My hands still trembled as I pulled myself a few inches back from Nick's chest, not quite sure if I was strong enough to let go completely.

"Man, are you okay Zak?" Nick asked once more, his tone concerned.

"Yeah I think so…" Zak trailed in response, his voice distant as he replied.

I finally took a deep, uneven breath, and pulled completely back from Nick who released me as I did so. I turned myself around to see Zak, Nick's flashlight illuminating him enough so that I could clearly see his expression. The life had returned to Zak's beautiful blue eyes, and that sight alone was enough to calm my frightened heart. I looked at him intently, his stare meeting mine and holding me there. The look in his eyes was saddened and apologetic, their blue depths swimming with regret. I knew he had remembered what happened, and I knew that it was tearing him apart inside. My brown orbs stared back into his blue ones, and I tried to silently let him know that it was okay, that I forgave him. Zak seemed to nod once, his eyes saddened still as his shoulders fell.

I understood what he felt to some degree, when I had been possessed I could still feel and see everything even if my reluctant body was being controlled completely by another opposing force. I wished more than anything at this point that he would not remember what the entity had done to me with his body, but I knew that was not going to happen and that he would've seen the whole thing crystal clear—like a spectator to a hellish movie.

I hoped that this movie would at least have a happy ending…but honestly, how many horror films gave you a happy anything?

"Okay well I'm glad you're okay, man. You wanna tell me what happened?" Nick tried again for some information.

At that instant Zak's eyes reconnected with mine and the look he shared seemed to be asking of he should say anything at all.

I thought about it for a moment, letting the options run through my tired mind. I knew that if we told them now, things would only get more complicated, yet at the same time I wanted the other two to know what had happened so that we could get out of here. I wanted more than anything to just tell them and save us all from whatever still loomed around us in the still blackness, protecting the others and myself from any harm that may come. I decided that telling them may upset them, but if that got us out of here, surely it was worth it.

I looked back to Zak and gave a nod, letting my black bangs veil my chocolate eyes from view.

"Well…" Zak began his tone calm and quiet.

I listened to Zak explain everything from his point of view, my eyes filling with tears as he told of me being pinned to the wall. I let them fall down my cold cheeks, the warm liquid burning with the fear I felt. My body shook softly as my crying intensified, but I managed to keep quiet as his explanation drew on. I wrapped my arms around my middle, trying to hold myself together as the world around me seemed to be crumbling. I knew that whatever the entity was that had done those things to me had not wanted to harm me, but it had wanted things that I had not ever thought to give to anyone as of yet. I could feel the emotions the poured from it as it held me in place on the wall, at the time I could not register what that heavy, warm feeling had been. Now I understood as I thought back on it, it was _lust_. More hot tears filled my eyes as the terrifying thoughts of what could've happened to me filled my mind, making my body shake even more. I felt sick, the thoughts within me making my head spin. What would I've done?

Zak's description of the incident continued as I watched, the memories of it all flooded my mind, an impending tsunami just waiting to completely destroy me.

I observed the faces of Nick and Aaron as they listened in horror, ever once in a while one of them would turn to look at me apologetically. I held my hands over my stomach as my suffering washed through me in waves, knocking my emotions around like a sail boat on the rough seas.

Finally after about five long agonizing minutes, Zak had finished explaining everything. Both Aaron and Nick looked to me, as if silently asking if it was all true. I could see their eyes both sadden and become fearful as I nodded in confirmation, letting them know that everything they were thinking was unfortunately true as could be.

"That's it man, we're getting out of here. Screw the investigation, bro. It just isn't worth it." Aaron rambled in fear, his voice wavering.

"I agree with Aaron for once, let's get out of here." Nick confirmed.

My heart jumped for joy at the thought of being released from this prison of terror.

"Okay, I'm going to call the caretaker and have him come let us out. I'll just tell him we're having technical difficulties and need to call off the lockdown." Zak informed us in a confident voice, his strength now seeming to return.

The flashlight shown as we watched Zak pull his phone from his pocket, flipping it open to dial for our escape. Just as he was about to punch in the numbers on the dial pad, the phone began to ring. He squinted in the light of the little screen, looking at the caller I.D of whoever was calling. His features filled with an expression of shock and his jaw dropped open in disbelief.

"What?" Nick questioned Zak's odd reaction.

Zak simply replied by turning his phone toward us so that we could see what it was he was staring at. And, for what seemed like the millionth time, my heart seemed to stop.

The number of the caller read: 666-666-6660. The repeating numbers filled my entire being with dread.

"What the hell, man!" Aaron yelled as we all gasped.

As soon as the phone had begun to ring, it stopped. The sound cutting off as the battery of Zak's cell phone clearly drained before our eyes and died.

"It just died!" Zak exclaimed in shock, his pitch raising an octave.

"Aaron, try your phone, and I'll try mine." Nick suggested quickly as he pulled out his own cell phone.

I followed suit and pulled my shiny pink phone from the pocket of my black cargo pants, clicking the unlock button to see if my battery too was dead.

Just as was expected—and dreaded—each one of our phones had died.

My heartbeat felt as if it had ceased to beat, the coldness of my fear shutting off the functions of my body as it washed through me. I clung my arms tighter around my middle, trying to pull the pieces of my being back together as I watched myself shatter. There was no way I would ever be able to collect all the shards, as the bits of my rationality scattered across the dusty floors of the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum. I let the tears of fear fill my eyes once again, as the terror running through my cold veins poisoned my very being. I could feel the blood rush out of my head, making me sick once more, and I struggled to keep myself on my feet. I knew that this entity wanted me, and now I knew that it was going to go to any lengths to make sure it had me. Like it had said before, I would belong to it. I looked over to Zak and the others, paying special attention to Zak. He may have been the object of my fear earlier, but now I wanted nothing more than to be in his arms. I prayed that he would be able to pull my scattered puzzle pieces back together and hold me up, because as of now I knew that I was not going to make it through this on my own. The impending question now was, would I make it through this at all?

This was how I was going to die, locked in an asylum of horror?

* * *

Well, I hope I didn't scare you all too badly. Mwahaha! Tune in next time, my minions.


	5. Torn

Hello my minions! I hope you all can forgive me for being absent for so long, I was wrapped up in family issues for quite some time. But, you know me, even if I know you'll probably forgive me I can't help but thrown in a bribe for good measure. Mwahhaha…

So I have made this chapter extra long and extra…well let's just say if you weren't scared of the last chapter, this one will take care of that. Sorry about the nightmares my dears. Enjoy, and as always please let me know what you think of my work.

* * *

I knew that I was going to have a hard time on this investigation from the moment that I first saw the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum, but I did not anticipate this being the last thing I would ever do…The last night of my life. Surely this was just a good dream gone horridly bad, it could not all be real.

However I was reminded that this was unfortunately the terrifying reality that I was living in along with Zak, Nick and Aaron, as the cold air around me made the horrid realism of my situation sink in. This was not something I was going to wake up from, safe in my bed like awaking from a nightmare. Instead every time I would close my eyes wishing for comfort they would only open to the same dark and unsettling building of my nightmares. It never ended, and I was beginning to think that this was my punishment for disobeying my parents and coming here against their will. I would be locked in this decrepit place forever, an eternity of retribution at the mercy of the dark, malevolent forces that kept me captive. I felt like crying again, and I wished more than anything that I could take it all back and just stay home where I was safe with my family. I could be happy with only seeing the team on TV, seeing as at least that way they would be out of harm's way and so would I. I knew that if I had not come along this would not have happened. It was probably clear to all of us that this evil being only wanted me, and so because of that it would do anything at had to in order to get me. Even kill those who had done nothing wrong. If I had not been here, the investigation could have gone on normally, with maybe a few EVPs here and there, but not this evil presence. It was only here for me, and I would forever be sorry for my being here being the reason for putting Zak and his friends in danger.

I knew that we wouldn't make it out of this. How could we? This thing, whatever it may be, was more powerful than anything I had felt before and clearly it had ways to keep us in its grasps. My heart filled with hopelessness as I let everything sink into my frightened body, I could feel my breathing become shallow as the dread of my own early doom pulled at my soul. The claws of fear and sadness ripped into the soft flesh of my heart, letting it bleed all of my hidden hope out onto the cold floors beneath me, its very essence spilling onto the concrete and stained it red with my horror. How were we supposed to make it out of here? We could try to wait until the caretaker was supposed to come let us out at six in the morning, but that was still about seven or more hours away and until then we would be solely at the mercy of this entity. I doubted we would make it. As much as I would have liked to have at the very least a sliver of hope to hold onto, every bit of my remaining sanity told me that my demise—our demise—was imminent, and that alone was enough to drain the last drips of my dwindling hope onto the ground at my feet.

'_I feel like I'm walking to my own funeral…' _I thought in despair as we walked along the hall leading to the front foyer.

Zak and the others had decided that our best bet was to go back to our base camp and wait there; they had said it was our only option seeing as our phones were out of the equation for our escape. I however, did not feel that we had any options at this point. The entity had trapped us in here, and I was near one hundred percent sure that it had further plans than that. It would have all night to do as it wished, and I didn't think that waiting in the foyer was going to do anything to hinder its progression. If it wanted me, it could easily have me.

My feet felt like lead again as I forced myself forward, trying to keep up with Zak as he walked ahead of me. I could feel my hopeless body drag my soul down as I moved, its weight feeling foreign to me as I struggled uselessly to hold myself up against its pull. It was like I was already dead and my spirit was stubbornly clinging to my corpse, trying to hold onto the life it once had. I knew I wasn't far from truth in my assumption seeing as soon I was going to die, at least I felt I would. Where would I go once I died? Would I be trapped here too, like so many other souls?

'_Whoever is listening, please just take me somewhere else if I die. Please, don't leave me with this demon. I don't want to be in hell.' _I prayed to anyone who might hear me, hoping that they would take pity on me an offer me at least a touch of salvation.

"Hey Zak, man, should we get the x cams?" Nick asked as he passed by one of the said objects, stopping to quickly pick it up and then jogging back to us.

"Not now, Nick. We can come back for them later, like in the day time. All I care about right now is getting us the hell out of here." Zak replied as we finally entered the foyer.

I watched him as he quickly walked over to the table and opened one of the black cases reposed there, his flashlight lighting his way as he retrieved what looked like a small packet from the case. Zak then turned to one of the other bags and pulled a little bottle from it, pouring a small amount of containers substance onto his finger tips. Opening the small packet from before he pulled forth four crosses, each looked like they had an inscription on the front of them, and swiftly he laid them out on the table. I didn't understand what he was doing, but I continued to watch him as he then pulled a book from one of the black cases. It was old and worn, its cover appearing to be a dusty brown. His eyes focused as he flipped the book open and seemed to thumb through it, searching for a specific page. The expression on his face became a satisfied determination as he finally found what he was looking for, and he held the book close to his eyes so that he could easily read its content. Then while balancing the flashlight and book in one hand, he reached down with his left hand to the crosses and rubbed whatever he had poured onto his hand on the faces of the little metal cross pendants reposed on the table.

My confusion only grew further, but I decided it would be best not to interrupt whatever it was that he was doing.

Zak took a deep breath and then looked back to the book in his hands, his eyes trained on the words written there. His voice then sliced through the silence that had settled around us as he began reading aloud the page before him. The words he spoke did not seem to be English and a few times he struggled with a word, his voice pausing to correct himself and then continuing at the pace he had been reading at. I tried desperately to understand the words but they came as complete gibberish to my untrained ears.

"_Crux sancta sit mihi lux / Non draco sit mihi dux  
Vade retro satana / Nunquam suade mihi vana  
Sunt mala quae libas / Ipse venena bibas"_

Zak's voice recited, his eyes scanning the page of the old book, the flow of the monotonous chant being somewhat awkward as he spoke the foreign words, but he got the paragraph out no less.

Once he had finished speaking, he set the book back down into the case and picked up the four crosses lying on the table. My eyes watched his strong form as it moved toward Nick, Aaron and I, the crosses swinging on their little chains as he walked.

"These—"He said while gesturing to the objects in his hand, "are blessed crosses that Father Ryan gave us on one of our investigations right after we interviewed him. He said they would repel demons and protect us from possessions if we ever felt the need to use them. I know we try not to bring religion into our investigations, but I think that we need to protect ourselves from whatever the hell that thing is. He also gave me this book of prayers and said that if we were to encounter an evil spirit, that we need to anoint these crosses with the blessed oil and then say a prayer of protection over them—which is what I just did. Now, there is one for each of us, so please put them on." Zak finished his explanation as he handed the metallic crosses over to us.

I took the little cross in my hand and stared at it thoughtfully for a moment before putting the silver chain around my thin neck. Honestly, I didn't know if a necklace could help us at this point and I didn't know if I believed in half the stuff Zak just said, but I did know that it was all I had to cling to right now and I was more than happy to have it. My brown eyes scanned over the shiny metal cross between my fingers and I wondered if this little trinket could actually stop the evil entity that lurked around us, could it really save us from our approaching demise? I could see this necklace held in my hands and I still was not sure that it could physically do anything, yet the demonic force had been invisible to me and yet had felt so very real and was seemingly frighteningly powerful. I am not saying I didn't believe the crosses could help, and by all means they could, I just didn't know for sure and that was unsettling. However, I suppose if Zak could place his trust in them, then so could I—or at least I would try.

"So, is this going to protect us from possessions?" I asked him while still fingering the pendant between the pads of my index finger and thumb, feeling its contours as if I was trying to memorize them.

"Yes, or at least it should. We haven't had the need for them before now so I am not sure." Zak stated honestly, the glow of his flashlight illuminating his apologetic look.

"Bro, these things better help or we're screwed." Aaron stated his voice full of obvious panic.

"Aaron, I know we are all scared, but we're going to have to try and hold it together. Trust me; I know what this thing can do now and if we show it fear I don't think things will be pretty. Remember these spirits feed on fear because it makes us more susceptible to their influence. Remember how it was at Bobby Mackey's and Poveglia Island?" Zak reminded with a cautious tone.

"Yeah bro, I remember." Aaron agreed with Zak, the fear still present in his wavering voice.

I looked around me now, the dark still impairing my sight even with the aid of the flashlights. My eyes could barely make out the room we were currently in, its appearance hidden in the blackness of night which seemed to swallow everything within it. My heartbeat was unsteady as I gazed around the expanses of the foyer, the feeling of hopeless dread poisoning the fabric of my sanity. Every time I would turn my sight to another portion of the space I swear I could see something there looking back at me, seeming to see me and then dash into the shadow and out of sight. I trembled as I attempted to hold myself in place and remain calm. These crosses were going to protect me…right? Unconsciously my cold hand reached up to the pendant hanging from my neck, grasping tightly to it now like a lifeline. My heart jumped as I realized that sounds were now accompanying the shadow figure's movements, the rustle of its passing from doorway to doorway audible in my ears. The echo of the sound rung in my ears like a horrible reminder that I was not alone and it and sent shivers of more unavoidable terror down my spine, leaving me even more unstable as I could feel the last shards of my sanity slip through my grasps. Maybe this was the precise reason that this was called the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum. Because people who were completely in their right mind could enter these doors and once inside every bit of that sanity would be stripped from them, like they had been torn away from their rationality and given nothing else to hold onto. It was unnerving to think I was losing my mind, but in all reality that's what I felt this place was doing to me. My eyes darted across the room as the feeling of someone watching my every move burned into me where I stood. I quickly glanced over to Zak and the others who had seemingly not noticed any of this as Zak was currently giving his plan of action which I had apparently tuned out long ago.

Another icy breeze of air passed by me as the figure of darkness once again shifted in the shadows, the echo of its slow and maniacal movements bouncing off the walls of my skull. I spun around quickly as yet another strange feeling emerged from the dark. My heart nearly came to a stop for the hundredth time that evening, as the feeling of two cold hands winding around my waist overtook me, the sickening feeling of the touch making my want to curl in on myself. My body trembled as the unseen force seemed to pull me toward the shadows with a tight frigid grasp. Just as soon as the contact was made I jerked away, letting a yelp exit my trembling lips as I stumbled backwards.

_**You won't let me control you, I see… In that case, I'll just have to make you come to me by force… **_The evil voice hissed in my ear, clearly unhappy with the supposedly protective cross that I now wore which had been noticeably tugged on as the entity whispered.

It all happened so fast, the voice had spoken and I had screamed once more, turning away from the entity once again.

"Kalani, what happened?" Zak shouted in shock as he heard my yelps of fear, panic and concern now filling his blue eyes as he stepped away from the table and came to my side.

"I—I heard the v—voice again." I stuttered in fear, still trying to force myself to breathe again. My body shuttered as I tried to pull myself together and stand straight.

"Come here, Kalani. Are you okay? What did it say?" Zak outstretched his arms as if gesturing for me to go to him.

I hesitated for a moment, not knowing if he would really be comfortable with being so close to me again. After all, I knew that what had happened earlier was just as unnerving to him as it had been to me, having no control over his own body and fearing that he might have really hurt me. I did not blame him at all for what happened. How could I? He had not really been the one to chase me…or kiss me for that matter. My heart sank as that realization hit me square between the eyes. He had an excuse for all of that… I however did not.

"Zak, I don't think being near you is exactly what she's gonna want after you…well you know." Nick pointed out as he noticed my obvious apprehension, and misread what I had truly been thinking.

"Right…" Zak realized, his arms dropping to his sides, his face looking contemplative. "Kalani, can I talk to you for a sec about something? I promise not to hurt you, okay?"

Nick looked at him warily as if to say that Zak couldn't fix it as simple as that that, but kept his mouth shut as he turned to look at me.

"Y—yeah," I replied sheepishly, not knowing what it was that he wanted to say.

My heartbeat picked up again with nervousness, hoping that he would not bring up what had happened between us not too long ago. I had already torn myself up enough in my mind and with my current fear I could not deal with this emotional tidal wave that would no doubt swallow me if I attempted to talk about the _kiss_. I fully well knew that he had not meant any of it, and that was an excuse that he could confidently stick to because it was the truth. I, on the other hand, had no excuse for kissing him back. I could not claim that I was possessed; we all knew that was not the case.

I knew that this was really not the time to worry about the drama of my emotions now, seeing as each and every second that passed was being watched by the unseen entity of the dark, yet I figured that maybe if I was lucky, he would not want to talk about that at all, and I wouldn't have to be consumed by my feelings of both embarrassment and guilt—not to mention fear. Rather he brought it up or not, it would be incredibly rude to ignore his request, after all he may have something completely different to say. So with a hint of silent hesitation still complicating my movements I took a step closer to Zak's warm body, the heat coming as a easing comfort that in my terror was something I was grateful for, and I looked up into his eyes—or what I could see of them seeing as in the dark it was nearly impossible to see anything.

"Nick, Aaron could you guys just…" Zak paused, leaving his sentence open-ended, knowing that they understood what he was asking.

"Right, we'll be over here." Nick replied with a sigh, while shaking his head. "But, for the record man, this is a bad idea. I can feel it." Nick finished as he shook his head slowly.

"Yeah bro, I don't think splitting up is a good idea." Aaron apprehensively said with his camera still clenched in his hand like a lifeline, attempting to avoid moving away from us as Nick tried to lead him to the other side of the room.

Nick finally managed to get Aaron to step away into the other side of the foyer, assuring him that it would only be for a moment and that they would be fine, even if clearly Nick did not believe that.

Even though they had moved away from Zak and me, they had only gone to the other side of the foyer room, and I knew that they were most likely still in earshot of us. Zak however did not seem to think they could hear us, and he cleared his throat before turning to speak to me.

"Kalani, I need you to know that what happened… I didn't… I never meant to hurt you." He explained, trying to choose the right words as he went along.

I nodded once, knowing that he could at least see that action faintly. "I know…I don't blame you." I replied, attempting to keep my voice as stable as possible. This was so not what I wanted to talk about.

"That wasn't me. I would never have done any of that to you, and I am so sorry if I scared you." Zak apologized, his voice clearly full of the regret he now felt. He shuffled closer to me and wrapped his muscular arms around my shoulders and pulled me against his warmth, enveloping me in a friendly hug.

"I know Zak, it's okay…I promise…" My voice now wavered as the memories of the event filled my already emotion filled head, trapping my in their overwhelming grasps and draining the ability to speak confidently completely from my body. I could already feel the hot sting of tears burning my eyes as the liquid guilt built up in my brown orbs. The fear of the dark being somewhere around me seemed to be pushed to the back of my mind as I focused on Zak, hoping that I could hold myself together as we spoke.

"Thank you, I just wanted to let you know that I would never have wanted to do that." He finished while holding me tighter.

I knew what he meant by that and yet I could not stop the tears from spilling from my eyes. Zak was clearly apologizing for chasing me and for cornering me—in essence, scaring the hell out of me—and of course I knew he would never have wanted that, but in my insecure mind that had now been completely ruined by my teenage feelings all I could put together was that he didn't want to kiss me…that he regretted it. Maybe it was stupid to think like that—no, I am pretty sure that in our situation it was stupid to get wrapped up—and yet maybe that was indeed what he was referencing; maybe the thought of kissing someone like me was just so unconceivable that he could never have wanted it. And in truth, it made the most sense for him to feel that way. But how could I know what it was that he was thinking? All I knew was that it was wrong and that I should not have enjoyed it like I had, so most likely—and most reasonably—he felt just as wrong as I truly should have. He was eighteen years older than me and that in itself was something that should've made the whole situation clearly immoral to me, it was simply against society. Yet, while all of it had unfolded I had truly thought he was looking past that like I foolishly had. The thought of my ignorance in that situation and the rationality that he probably had, which I lacked, alone made me want to curl into a ball and disappear. The memories of my hopeful thoughts during our chance kiss came pouring into my head like a condemning flood, making my head swim with embarrassment. How foolish my clouded teenage hopes were. I felt so stupid for believing that he loved me so easily. I was merely a silly—embarrassingly ignorant—girl in the end…wasn't I?

My embarrassment of what I had unthinkingly done was filling my entire being and making me feel more insignificant that I had ever felt. I couldn't take it anymore, and I used my remaining strength to push away from him, my tears now sounding more like sobs as they poured from my eyes.

"I'm sorry!" I blurted in shame. I couldn't stand the insecure feelings I was having, and talking about it with him was not as easy as I had prayed it would be.

"Kalani, what's wrong? What are you sorry for?" Zak responded in shock, clearly not understanding why it was that I was crying.

"Y—you might have not wanted to k—kiss me…But, I did want it! I am so sorry a—and I know you probably think I am completely disgusting, but I—I couldn't h—help it!" I stumbled through my words between hiccups of tears.

After the sentence left my mouth I could only think that perhaps I should've just not said anything at all, because I knew this wasn't important to our current situation and was probably very unimportant and revolting to him. I was just a kid to him after all, and there was no way I could force him to see past that fact. I knew he'd probably want to push me away even further now that he knew for sure what I was convinced he was already thinking of me, and my heart sank to the floor more and more with each sob. I had ruined my meeting with Zak—not that the whole possession thing didn't ruin it, but I didn't have control of that. On the other hand, this was all my doing. I had been the one who should have stopped it all since he could not. Instead, I had let myself get carried away with my feelings so much so that I could not even see what I was doing or what was going on around me. I am so stupid!

"Kalani, look…"He began with a sigh, his features—or what I could see of them—forming into an understanding and apologetic expression on his handsome face. "It's okay, really it is. I understand that you couldn't have known that I wasn't me—I didn't even know at first. I don't think you're disgusting at all, I promise."Zak paused as he placed a hand on my shoulder.

"I—I am so sorry…"I trailed, unable to pull myself together. I felt so pathetic for being so emotion centered while in the situation we were in. I knew this was definitely not the right place or time to be wrapped up in my teenage issues and insecurities. I realized the pitiable nature of my confession as each whimpering excuse of a sentence dripped from my mouth, and I regretted every moment that passed. I felt as if I could apologize all night and for all eternity and it still would not make up for my lack of self restraint and rationality. My icy lips trembled once more with quivering sobs as looked up to him, wanting to speak but knowing that if I tried it would no doubt be an unintelligible utterance of incoherent sounds. So, I thought for the moment it would be best if I stayed silent. That however was easier said than done.

'_Kalani, stop making an even bigger fool of yourself in front of him by blubbering like a little girl! This is really a bad time to get distracted by your emotional issues.'_ I scolded myself internally, knowing that I was only making things more awkward and difficult now. Why had I let myself do something so stupid again? I was beginning to believe that as the minutes ticked by I was gradually losing all sense of self-respect that I had once had.

For a moment I was pulled from my thoughts by yet another shuffle in the darkness and my eyes darted to the shadows and back to Zak's face. Every creeping sound around me still made me shudder, even if I was currently consumed in the painfully truthful affirmation of my earlier actions. I could not escape the being that haunted me. No matter where I went, what I did, or how I felt…it was always there. Almost like a scar that could never heal, always present to carve out my sanity and remind me that my soul could not be free of its own. I was trapped here, forever. In that respect, none of the emotions I felt would ever mean anything. Suddenly I knew why I had chosen to tell Zak the truth when it was something that I knew would only tear up my emotional state further. It was not solely for the reason that I regretted making a fool of myself, like I had previously thought, but instead because I was subconsciously looking for a distraction from my fate. I knew I was damned to this hellish destiny of mine, and that I could not ever outrun it—that was just something I had come to as a conclusion when our only chance for escape was torn away from us like lambs in the slaughterhouse. Correction… not _lambs…_just one lamb, seeing as I was the only one it really wanted. Even though I felt in my heart that I truly was sorry for violating the speck of respect Zak had for me, by giving in to something that should have been absolutely inconceivable to me, I knew that everything I was clinging onto as reason for my current state of mind was my body's self-defense mode attempting to preserve my sanity. I was, unintentionally, forcing myself to have a normal situation. Talking about my feelings was a normal thing to do as a teenage girl, especially when those feelings were as strong as mine were. So, in striving to maintain control over my senses, my body and mind were struggling to hold off the reality of my situation. I was truly going insane, wasn't I?

Zak may have been the one to start our current conversation, but my subconscious and now irrational mind had jumped at the opportunity to seal out the knowledge of my demise.

I let the realization sink into my exhausted mind, feeling it fill my heart with dread once more and blocking out the sadness I had felt. My tears dripped less hurriedly down my cheek as the new found numbness took hold of me. Without the distraction of my emotions that my mind had provided for my struggling sanity I was left cold and empty. I came to realize that nothing I was saying or had been focusing on would come to mean anything in the end; all of it would simply fade into the silence of the blackness just as I would once this entity stole me away from the world I knew.

All of the regret and embarrassment I had been experiencing was nothing in light of our—or my situation. I only wish I had seen that before I had confessed anything to Zak, it would have made things so much easier. We could have left it at his explanation and put it all behind us, but instead I had created only more suffering for myself.

"Kalani, you didn't do anything wrong…"Zak's strong yet soft voice murmured as he pulled my numb body close to his once again and wrapped an arm around my quivering shoulders in a intended friendly and comforting embrace.

I knew responding to him would make the most sense, but I could not force the words out of my sealed mouth. It was like because of my self-created distraction the force of the knowledge of my approaching death was increased in strength and affect by tenfold, hitting me dead on like a speeding freight train—traveling just fast enough to shatter my bones and spirit, but leave my motionless body there to die in the hands of the devil who thirsted after my soul. It was like my body was shutting down with fear and emptiness all over again, closing out all my bodily functions and pulling me into the darkened depths of my already shattered mind. Ironic, wasn't it? All my teenage life I had been dreaming of going on a ghost hunt with the GAC, and now I that I had this would end up being my resting place. The hunter was now becoming the hunted. Well, at least I had been pulled out of my blubbering emotional state of weakness, right?

"Kalani, are you okay?" His perfect voice inquired, and though I knew I heard him I could not pull myself out of my enclosing mind to respond.

This was not fair to him, I know. Not only had I now ruined any positive perceptions that he may have had of me, but now I was leaving his kindness hanging. Zak was trying to make this better and to comfort me, and I wanted more than anything to thank him, but the draining pull of my death blocked out any and all hopes of me responding to his compassion. My heart beat slowly and painfully as it struggled to find motivation to continue on when in the end it would cease to beat anyway. The now dismal nature of its very existence drowning out the light and life it held at one point not too long ago. However, it too would soon be drained of its life-force all together just as I was drained of my sanity.

My numbed frame shook in his arms as he held onto me, my bones rattling with despair. I desperately tried to will words from my trembling lips, but I could not force out the sounds no matter the force I put into the act. I realized that none of this made sense, one moment I was blubbering about kissing him and the next I was engulfed in my sea of numbing dread, but perhaps our self-defense methods are not suppose to make sense.

"Kalani, please…what's the matter? " Zak tried again to wake me from my frozen state.

"Hey, Zak," I hear Nick call out from the dark, "I know you guys need to have a little talk and smooth things out, but Aaron and I are getting some weird EMF and temperature readings over here, and I don't think we should all be in separate parts of the room." Nick finished as his usually calm, soft and collected voice now wavered.

"Yeah bro, like I said before, splitting up is the not-smart idea."Aaron chimed in, his voice holding a fearful, I-told-you-so tone as he spoke.

Zak's arms loosened around me for a moment as he sighed, and I could feel his shoulders fall from the tensed position.

"Right, you guys should head back over here."Zak agreed with another sigh, his head lowering.

For a moment I thought I was hallucinating, as I realized that he was pulling even closer to me than he had been before, holding my shoulders so I wouldn't pull away. My heart rate picked up at the sensation of his intense body heat and I cursed at myself for falling right back into my unavoidable teenage emotions like the numbness had not been there at all. What was wrong with me? Was I truly insane? I mean, normal people don't flip through emotional phases this fast do they? It just didn't make any sense at all. I had gone from emotional wreck to a numb, even more unstable emotional wreck and then back full circle. If I thought I had lost it before, now I was way over the deep end.

I was completely caught up in the odd reality that my mind was not functioning like a normal human's should, so much so that I hadn't noticed that he had moved even closer to me until his lips were nearly pressed against my ear. Shivers were running down my spine and making it feel like a rickety old bridge that was quite near its breaking point. What was he doing?

I could hear him breathe in quickly as if he was going to speak, and then, I realized what he was doing. He was going to whisper something to me—or at least that's what I was hoping he was going to do.

"Kalani, I need you to know that I do not blame you in anyway shape or form for anything. You don't need to feel bad at all, okay? Also, I want you to know that we—no, I won't let anything happen to you and I am going to do my best to get you home safely. I am the one who should be sorry, if we had known it was going to be this active we would have never have asked you to come along. It really isn't worth the risk." He whispered quietly and quickly, and while the whole process of him pulling close and uttering his statement went by incredibly quickly to avoid the other two seeing or hearing us, in my tired and still fright racked brain the time passed like hours, like slow-motion .

"Let's just put it all behind us, okay? How about we just focus on getting out of here?" He concluded and the pulled away to stand just in front of me, his arms still loosely around my shoulders.

The relief that washed through me after his offer was kind of astonishing to me, I thought that surely in my shaken and clearly disturbed state of mind I would not be able to hold any sort of joy in my heart, but the thought of being truly forgiven and washed free of my transgressions was strangely uplifting and distracting enough to bring a little peace.

I whipped the remaining tears from my eyes and tried to push my ever present fear down as I saw the guys came back into my blurry and darkened eyesight, their feet shuffling quickly across the dirty and darkened floor of the front foyer. I could not clearly see their expressions from my shrouded spot, still held in Zak's loose hug, but from the way they sucked in ragged yet quiet gasps of air I could tell that they were suffering fear just like I knew all to well—maybe not quite as severely as mine though, as I was still slightly frozen and unmoving.

"So, what did you guys mean by 'weird readings'?" Zak questioned after clearing his throat and bringing his tone back its normal volume as the other two came to stand by us, his arms loosening even more around me until he gently released his hold on my quivering form.

"Well, to put it simply bro, everything's readin' as freaking triple six again." Aaron answered his voice clearly full of fear. "I really don't like this place, man." He continued with another waver in his voice.

"W—wait, last t—time I got that reading was before…" I trailed off as I realized the connection between the EMF reading and the…possession.

Zak eyed me warily as I spoke, I could clearly see that he was uncomfortable and I let the end of my sentence fall as I dropped my eyes to the floor.

"Kalani, don't worry. We are not going to let that happen again." Zak assured as he looked into my eyes, though most of our features were obscured by the darkness so it was hard to actually make any eye contact.

His words burned in my mind as he spoke, the memory I was supposed to be letting go of persistently hung in my brain. I watched him closely, wishing I could be wrapped in the comfort of his hug once more, and even if there was not romantic inclination to it I would be happy with just his friendly embrace. After all, if I was going to die here it would be incredibly foolish to turn away any human contact that may be my last. No. I couldn't think like this. He promised me he would protect me, and though it was hard to fathom that he could stop what seemed like the devil himself, it was all I had left to hope for seeing as my hope had been stripped from me long ago in this place. Zak was my everything, as weird as that might have seemed, and I wanted nothing more than to believe in him.

Zak made his way through the dark back to the table to pick up his camera once more. Confusion washed through my mind, was he really going to continue filming? Surely this was an investigation no would want to see. He turned around to face us again the filming device held strongly in his hand.

"Guys, whatever this thing is, it can always see us. But, we can't see it, so I think we should keep our cameras with us and use the night vision so that we can keep a watch for it. It won't do so us any good to sit here blind." Zak explained as he handed me a camera and gave one to Nick.

What good would seeing it do? I mean this thing wasn't human, so it wasn't like if we saw we could stop it. If it wanted to get to us it would, wouldn't it? Hopelessly I looked down to my camera, staring at the glowing little LCD screen, its display dull and monochromatic. Suddenly something caught my eye, and my heart dropped. Once again the battery icon displayed the dreaded repeat of that ominous number. This thing just wasn't going to give it up.

I felt tears filling my eyes again, knowing what had happened after I saw that number that last time. The little crystal drips made their way down my cold cheek and fell down to the floor, making the faintest sound on impact. I could hear my heartbeat in my ears as the thoughts rushed through my head.

'_Why won't you leave me alone?'_ My desperate thoughts pleaded.

_**Because I always get what I want…Hmm more like who I want…**_ The maniacal voice pierced the silence of my mind.

Before I could even gasp or respond in any way to the entity's statement I was on the floor, my ankles seeming have been grabbed and pulled out from under me. My hands didn't have time to catch myself as I toppled to the ground, the camera that had been in my hands falling to the floor in front of me. I looked into its light with horrified eyes, hoping that just the glowing of its screen would be enough to pull me away from the dark. As I stared at the little light of the camera I realized it was getting further and further away from me. How was it moving? Then it hit me, it wasn't moving…I was. Whatever this thing was had a hold of my ankles and was dragging me down the hall to heaven knows where—or maybe more like hell knows where. I dug my nails into the cracked and dirty white floors of the front foyer, trying desperately to hold onto something. I knew I needed help but for some reason I could not force words out of my mouth. It was all happening too fast and all I could hear was the muffled sound of dragging and shuffling that was being mostly drowned out by my heart pounding at a millisecond rate in my head, making my head swim and my sight go black around the edges.

As the beating got louder and louder I was beginning to thing that I would pass out from the rush of blood to my head. Boom, boom, boom, boom. It thud over and over so rapidly I couldn't even breathe, but I knew one thing was for certain, I had to try to yell for help if it was the last thing I did. So, with air hurriedly rushing in and out of my lungs so fast it was hard to find time to speak through, I forced the shortest and only word I could think of…a name.

"ZAK!"

I could hear the sound of quick and heavy footsteps coming toward me, and through my hazy darkened vision I could see Zak's form reaching toward me. I felt slightly relieved though my heart still raced and my head was so fuzzy from the fall and the fear that the joy was difficult to feel, but all I needed to know was that I was going to be okay. But, then I realized something… he was getting further and further from me too. No. This thing couldn't have me, not when Zak was so close.

"Kalani!" I heard him yell out, but his voice was fading away as the distance between us grew.

I dug my nails into the ground as hard as I could, feeling them scrape and bleed, but knowing that I had to try and slow my progression into the black. My heart beat so loud now that I could hear nothing but it as I was roughly dragged down another hall. I felt myself smash into a wall as I was practically thrown around a corner and then dragged once more down the next corridor. My hands were now bleeding enough to leave a bloody trail down the once shiny tile floor, and I hoped vainly that Zak might be able to follow the trail I was leaving. I prayed and prayed that if I looked hard enough at the end of the hall I would see him coming to save me, but no matter how hard I focused through my blurred vision I could not make him be there. He was gone, and so was I. I looked once more at my hands as they dragged, the smell of my blood reminding me that at the end of wherever I was being taken was only my death waiting there to steal me away and trap me here forever. My tear-filled and desperate eyes looked up once more to end of the hall, its blackness staring back twice as intensely.

Suddenly I was jerked much harder through a doorway and thrown a crossed the ground, crying out in pain as I rolled through the debris left on the floor. I looked up quickly, realizing that I no longer felt the hands on my ankles. This was my only chance.

With a sudden burst of bravery I bolted up from the dirty floor and ran for the open door, moving faster than I thought I could. I made it!

However, just as I reached the opening the door in front of me slammed shut, trapping me in the darkened room. I cried even harder as I screamed once more I tried as hard as I could to get the door to open, pulling on it relentlessly and slamming myself against it in hopes of forcing it to open my path back up. No matter how hard I tried I couldn't get it to budge and as I looked down to my hands and the door knob I could see the blood I had smeared a cross the white surface, its red color contrasting the door. I screamed once more and tried hopelessly again to get it to open, and just as I attempted to push the door again I could feel the cold hands harshly grab at my shoulders and flip me around, slamming my back roughly against the door.

"No, no please NO!" I screamed out again as I struggled against what appeared to be nothing, thrashing myself side to side hoping to release its hold on me. To no avail.

I heard a rough growl crackle through the air and my hands flew to cover my face, knowing it wouldn't really protect me, but not knowing what else I could do. I shivered in fear and disgust as the cold hands roamed harshly over my body, still holding me tight to the door behind me. This couldn't be happening. My knees fought to hold me up as the entity seemed to be pulling me to the floor; I would not let it get that far. I struggled continuously, knowing that if I didn't I would no doubt be hurt and violated even further. I had to fight; it was all I could do.

I screamed out a bloodcurdling shriek as I felt myself be pulled from the door and once again thrown to the floor, rolling a crossed it again and slamming into a wall. My ankles were grabbed once more as I was pulled to the center of the black room, the pressure of the entity holding me the ground like a steal grip had welded my shoulders down as well as my hips. The icy grasp of the evil entity pulled and felt a crossed my body again and I struggled even more screaming out more and more until I thought for sure my voice would give out. My thrashing seemed to gain me no advantage as the spirit seemed unaffected as it continued its assault.

"NO! Please no!" I begged desperately again, foolishly hoping that it would grant me this one wish for salvation, if only for a moment of peace, but knowing deep down that it would not.

_**Do not fight me…**_ It growled out in a harsh piercing tone as my struggles became more frantic and harsh.

My eyes rolled back and another much more intense shriek ripped from my throat, feeling like my vocal cords were shredding in the process, as an unimaginable pain tore through my back. The immense pain crippling my senses and shattering me apart, I could no longer breathe as the wave of agony racked my body. Just when the wave seemed to dull the slightest bit and I could suck in a quivering breath, another tear elicited a new piercing scream that tore through my lips. Is this what dying felt like?

_**I told you not to fight me, but you didn't listen…You need punishment, my love.**_ The voice hissed out with a tinge of pure joy in its disembodied tone.

For I brief moment I tried to listen to what it was saying, attempting to figure out if it had really called me "my love," but my thoughts were cut short as more ripping pain shook me. The cutting continued several times, each bringing with it more bone crushing agony. When it finally subsided, tremors rattled my broken body as my chest heaved with ragged and wavering gasps. Sobs broke through my lips as tears poured down my face. I couldn't I have just died? Would it not have made the most sense? Instead, I was left alive and fully aware of the torture my body had just endured.

The pressure of the entity pressed back down on my trembling body and I could feel the icy hands grabbing my hips and holding me down like painful vice grips once more, crushing me with the agonizing reality that I was yet again trapped by the omniscient presence. I tried to lift my arms and push myself from the cold flooring beneath me, but I could not muster the energy to even this simple action. My trembling hands brushed the ground as I tried at another feeble attempt of lifting my outstretched appendages, feeling a crossed the dirt covered floor. My bloodied finger tips soon grazed over something warm and wet, the metallic smell in the air alerting my already hyper alert senses what it was. Blood…my blood. The crippling pain in my back consumed most of my struggling thinking process, but a small fraction of my cerebral mind wondered briefly how much blood I had lost.

The cold hands of the demonic spirit continued with their previous actions of running down my sides and across my hips, making my stomach twist in disgust as my abused body trembled like a leaf blowing in the merciless wind of fall. All I could hope for was that soon I would blow away and be freed from hopelessly clinging on the tree that once was my thriving life as it was now only serving as a torturous cage for my spirit.

"P—please…please stop…" I begged one more time, choking out my words through the sobs that racked my small frame.

_**You only got what you deserved…Don't complain, my dear. **_The voice explained in an oddly contemptuous tone, as if it was faking the kind name of endearment that it persisted on using.

I was beginning to get used to the sound of its scornful voice, its possessive nature and mannerisms—and sad as it was, I was now accustom to the fear it brought me. I had no idea how long I had been lying in this room, it felt as it had been an eternity, and from the drained and hazy feel my mind was now slipping into I was almost positive that I was right. I did not know what state my back was in or how severe the injury was, but if it was as detrimental as it felt surly I would bleed to death eventually.

Suddenly a voice broke the silence and my train of thoughts once more, only this time the voice was different, it was comforting. In contrast the spiteful and harsh voice of the demonic force this female voice didn't bring terror or pain along with it, instead only a protective and strong air.

_You will not have her. Not this time… _The female entity spoke fiercely to who I assumed was the evil energy.

I did not have much time to process the next events as they seemed to fly passed in a blur. I could hear a series of hisses and growls as the pressure that had been suffocating my body lifted momentarily and I was thrown once more to the side, my body rolling through the debris on the dirty floor again. I could feel the burning in my back as I looked up, the sudden sound of the door being thrown off its hinges breaking through my senses. I could barely process what was happening as my mind struggled to grasp it, my heartbeat flying through the roof and nearing its bursting point.

Unexpectedly another sensation was made known to my tired and damaged body, something or someone was pushing me toward the door.

_Run!_ I heard the female voice call out, the sound ringing in my ears.

You didn't have to tell me twice in the state I was in, as I forced my shredded body onto my feet and bolted for the door, never once looking back.

* * *

Well there it is, I hope you weren't too scared… it only gets better. Maybe. Mwahaha!

Review please! I'll give you a cookie :3


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